You Know Sixs A Crowd,Right?
by WDGHK
Summary: With his budding friendship with Lynn growing, Taylor is eager to spend the weekend with her, but he's going to find out that getting the jock away from her family isn't so easy, as he gets stuck with the whole family inviting themselves for a sleepover at his place, while an old enemy resurfaces. (DISCONTINUED)
1. Totally Not A Date

_Royal Woods Middle School_

It was lunch time and the students were gathered in the cafeteria, being served what most perceived as less than pleasant dinning experiences.

Lynn Loud was a freshman at her new school, having only been here for about a month. She, along with her siblings, had experienced quite a few changes in their everyday lives these past two months, and surprisingly, switching schools turned out to be the most minor one for her. Not that this new environment intimidated here in any way, she was always up for a new exiting challenge and there was little reason to fear anybody here since, beside her status as an athlete and her being anything but the shy, introverted type in general, most knew that she could pummel them without breaking a sweat if they got on her bad side.

If anything, Lynn`s biggest concern was being there to support her older sister Luan, who, as the jock found out this summer, needed all the support she could get at this place, especially if the schools vile, resident queen bitch, Kathleen, went after her, which was a constant looming problem her sister had to watch out for.

Lynn was sitting together with several friends, all from her softball team called the Royal Woods Squirrels, all of whom were talking amongst themselves over their various plans for the weekend, most involving sport. It was Friday and like most kids, Lynn was eagerly, and impatiently, waiting to hear that final bell ring for the day and enjoy her freedom for the next two days. Right now, she and her friend Margo were unenthusiastically poking the schlock on their trays which had quickly made them lose their appetites. Lynn yawned before commenting on the food.

"And you say this stuff is supposed to be mashed potatoes?" Lynn questioned drearily, ready to dump her tray in the garbage bin.

"That`s what the lunch lady said, though if you ask me I`d sooner say this was expired oatmeal." Margo replied while resting her head in her hand.

"Yeah that's it, from now on I`ll be bringin` my own lunch from home, just like in elementary school." Lynn declared to her friend.

"Ditto." Margo agreed, lighting up. "Hey, do you believe those rumors that the cafeteria staff just hobbles together a bunch of random stuff together on a whim and call it whatever they want, just so it could pass as food?" she jokingly asked.

Lynn shuddered before laughing. "I do not want to think about it. Either way those people could seriously take some tips from my dad. If there ever was a perk to bein` in his custody then it's the fact that he's a great chef..." she said proudly "... _when we can afford it at least._ " she mentally added.

Then Lynn felt another strong yawn. Margo saw it and already knew why her friend seemed so sleepy today during classes, it wasn't the first time it had occurred this month.

"Lynn did you get any sleep last night?"

"Sure I did..." Lynn got interrupted by another yawn "...well mostly."

"Did one of your siblings have night terrors again?" her friend asked with concern, not beating around the bush with it. She pretty much knew the answer already.

Lynn sighed and looked away. "It was Lucy...again, you know the goth one. It took a lot to finally calm her down. I don't even know if she got any sleep last night..." Lynn explained dejectevly while rubbing her head "...I dozed off somewhere at 4 a.m."

She didn't need to go into any more details. Margo, and most of her friends, knew the story and the reasons behind it at this point. In a relatively small and often quiet town like theirs any news traveled fast, and news of the Louds camping incident spread quickly.

"Poor kid, you guys just can't seem to catch a break these days..." Margo said sympathetically "...and how has Lincoln been doing?"

"Better than Lucy I suppose, he hasn't had any nigmares lately and he has made a full recovery, last week he at last had all those damn stitches taken out of him." Lynn told her, thankful that her brother could finally go back to living a normal life after his near death experience just a month prior.

It was definitely a major step in helping the family move away from the memory of that dreaded camping trip. Despite how much time had passed, its effects still haunted the siblings, especially Lucy and Lincolnm, who had suffered the worst in that attack and had been repeatedly reliviving those moments in their dreams for the following weeks, but Lynn`s other siblings and herself weren't spared from their own occasional nightmares either.

" Good for him..." Margo smiled at her friend before starting to shift her eyes, observing the cafeteria. There was someone missing from their table, someone most of them wouldn't have wanted to be there in the first place, but who would constantly join their group at Lynn`s insistence and none of them were in a position to do anything about it, partially out of fear, but also out of what was essentially guilt tripping.

The incident was quite a shock to most people who heard about it. The only bigger shock, at least to the local kids, was the news of the unexpected hero who came to the siblings aid in their most dire moment. For the kids inbetween Lincoln`s and Luan`s age group it was especially hard to believe that this person was the reviled bully that some had started calling "Taylor the Tyrant". And now he and Lynn were apparently friends!

The group suddenly heard footsteps, followed by most of the other students going quiet or starting to murmur uneasily. They knew who was coming.

" _And speak of the devil_." Margo mused bitterly as she saw someone standing behind Lynn, holding his own tray. The other kids at the table immediately stopped talking and shrank back with unnerved expressions. Wondering what was going on, Lynn turned around, but unlike the rest of them, she seemed happy to see the new arrival.

"Bout time you showed up Ryan, where were ya durin` history class anyway?" she asked him in a friendly tone.

Taylor wore an uncharacteristically joyous smile on his face, looking rather sinister and creepy to the onlookers, but then again looking scary was his default expression given his less than appealing complexion, only adaided now by the scars that were edged across his left cheek.

"Tryin` to find a more comfortable pillow to help me sleep." he quipped casually, and Lynn actually found herself laughing at his remark, Margo looked on annoyed at their casual chatter, while the others remained scared and withdrawn.

Lynn elbowed him in the side. "Can't blame ya for needing it, but seriously now? Where were you?"

Putting his tray down but not sitting himself, Taylor smirked "Oh I just had to make a quick visit to the doctor to remove my cast..." he paused and lifted his left hand up in full view, making everyone else gasp and cringe.

A prominent scar was running down his arm towards his hand which was half way covered in mangled scar tissue and of course he was missing one finger. Even Lynn was shocked by the sight but tried not show it. She knew what to expect and didn't want to make him feel anymore self-conscious about it.

Her friends meanwhile kept quiet, it was a good thing that they, as athletes, were used to seeing injuries and the fact that Taylor had made them repeatedly listen to the story of his "heroic act" before, mainly to stroke his ego as most of them thought, and gave detailed description of his injuries, otherwise some fainting and vomiting would have been going on right now.

"...and now I`m free from visiting those needle wielding quacks ." he beamed. Lynn tried not to look or think too much about his hand, so she tried to change the subject.

"So, you won't have to worry about seein` the big, scary doctor anymore, huh?" she teased him as she sat back down. The boy didn't bite.

"Pffff that's just the icing on the cake Lynn." he replied amusingly before looking at the rest of the kids, his eyes scanning them like a lion trying to spot the weakest zebra in the herd. Their obvious fear and discomfort still made him feel a sense of superiority. He may have sworn off bullying, but he still very much enjoyed the sensation of being top dog, sometimes ones reputation was more valuable than ones actions.

His lip curved into a smile, showing his crooked teeth. "How good it is to see ya all again, how about we play a little game. I propose a quiz." he said in a superficially affable tone and clasped his hands. Lynn rolled her eyes and rested her head in her hand, Ryan still couldn't resist to scare the shit out of people, not that he had to put much effort into it.

" _This should be fun_?" she mused. Taylor folded his arms behind his back and started circling the table.

"Now. Can anyone guess why I`m in such a good mood today?" he asked them all out loud.

Everyone he passed by remained eerily quiet and cowered as Taylor walked by them, seemingly expecting a punch to the face if they spoke up and gave the wrong answer. Knowing that only made the raven haired boy more amused.

"Here`s a hint, today`s a very special today! Now don't be shy. How about-YOU!" Taylor pointed at one of the boys who jumped in fear and surprise.

"Can you guess?" Taylor sneered.

Sweating nervously, the other boy struggled to find an answer. "Eh...because it's Friday?" he said cluelessly.

"Wrong answer Francis." Taylor chortled and moved on. The Hispanic kid looked on.

"Actually.." he stuttered "..my name`s Francisco, but you were close man, very close, no hard feelings!" he said hastily.

"Yeah...whatever..." Taylor waived in disinterest, surveying for his next target.

Margo rolled her eyes. She had been one of the first in the group to learn about Lynn`s and Taylor`s change in relationship, and was therefore one of the first to get used to the latter enough to view him as more of a nuisance than someone she should be afraid of. Or maybe she was just one of the few courageous enough not to be intimidated by him, at least that's what she tried to show on the outside.

"How bou-YOU!" Taylor asked some girl, who's name he couldn't bother to remember.

"Ehhhhh...it`s September 25th?" she answered meekly.

"Warmer, but not quite there..." he shook his head before shifting his gaze towards Margo. She glared at him which he returned with a smirk.

"You wanna try Maggie?" he asked. She narrowed her eyes.

"Maggie? That's the weird emo girl, you dolt! I`m Margo!" she became enraged.

At that remark some of the kids turned to see said emo girl sitting and eating alone at a nearby table. They quickly turned back and shuddered once she shot them one creepy and lifeless stare upon hearing her name being mentioned.

"Take it easy tutz, you know am not good with names?" Taylor shrugged carelessly. Margo balled her fist.

"You`ve known me for three weeks now and you still can't be bothered to remember my name?!" she growled. She felt Lynn hand on her shoulder.

"Well..." Taylor rubbed his chin, not seeming to care if he offended the girl.

"Relax Marg, you know he`s just trying to tick you off." Lynn assured her friend before suddenly grabbing and pulling Taylor down, forcing him to sit down between her and Margo.

"Alright you had your fun Ryan. Game`s over." Lynn told him, her tone underlying the message that he better behave himself. Of course Taylor wasn't so easily intimidated.

"But Lynn, nobody got my question right." he replied in a mock hurt tone. The jock rolled her eyes.

"I can, it`s September 25th, meanin` you have served your time." she answered. Taylor smiled at her.

"You got it, speaking of that..." he got cut off when both heard Margo mutter.

" _And how are those joyous news?_ " she snarked quietly. Taylor gave her a deadpan glare.

Lynn`s team mates were whispering to themselves at her odd choice of words. It was Francisco who dared to speak to the former bully.

"Wait? Were you actually in jail?" he asked cluelessly, to which the other kids exchanged perplexed glances.

Taylor hollered with laughter at their stupidity on the inside. But then again, those dopes weren't too far off from reality.

"Eh I suppose you could say that Bushel Brows." Taylor answered offhandedly.

"Ugh, no Einstein! He was grounded for a month cuz he had the briliant idea of lyin` to his parents and running off to the middle of nowhere to go camping..." an annoyed Margo told the others.

Taylor glared at her, her mouthing off was starting to get on his nerve. She glared back at him "...and we all know how that bit him in the ass later." she finished with a hint of glee in her tone and expression. It quickly went away once Lynn shot her a disapproving look.

"Margo, that`s enough. Don't you think he feels bad enough about it as it is." Lynn defended him.

"If I were you, I`d dial back the lip, you don't wanna get on my bad side, Pinocchio... ." Taylor sneered at Margo, the remark actually made her look uncomfortable, and cover her nose ashamedly and avoid eye contact with him.

Some of the other kids snickered lightly at his remark. " _Oh no he didn't_..." Lynn heard Francisco whisper to another boy. Their snickering only made Margo shrink even more.

Seeing her friend hurt, Lynn kicked Taylor in his shin.

"AH! What was that for?!" Taylor complained while clutching his leg.

"Apologize. Now!" she ordered him. Taylor smirked.

"Why? I just said it as I saw it-AH!" his snide remark resulted in a painful stomp on the foot. He heard some of the kids snickering at him now. The snickering ceased abruptly once Taylor shot them a vicious glare.

"Oh, did you guys see something funny?" he asked coldly and threateningly. The kids all shrank back with fear.

"Cuz I`d love to have good laugh too, so please clue me in on the jok-WOW!" he was cut off when Lynn grabbed his arm and started dragging him out of the cafeteria.

"You. Me. The Hallway!" Lynn barked at him angrily. The other students heard the commotion and stared at the pair. Taylor did not take kindly to the unwanted attention.

"What are you bozos lookin` at?" Taylor snapped, prompting every other students to instantly and obediently look away in fear at his threat. Taylor smirked with satisfaction.

Lynn, meanwhile, sighed inwardly, she knew Margo wasn't the forgiving type and still had a lot of bottled up disdain for Taylor, most kids at this school still did. She knew Margo was worried that Taylor would snap again and hurt her, like he did during summer, all her team mates still remembered the way she looked when she came to that one game following her less than pleasant first run in with Taylor.

Taylor wasn't helping matters by still acting the way he always did when interacting with people, nore were the various rumors surrounding him and his overall bad reputation, which Taylor would often publicly support just for kicks or to maintain his image as a tough guy, no matter how false or exaggerated the various notions about him where.

She was really trying to help him shed that image and integrate him as a normal kid among their peers, but clearly neither side was going to make this easy. But Lynn was never the kind of person to give up easily.

Once the pair had exited trough the door, the rest of the students quickly started chattering to each other about what they just seen. Seeing Taylor letting himself be dragged away by Lynn certainly added more fuel to the rumors about just how close those two were, even amongst Lynn`s own friends, and Margo, now feeling completely alone and still hurt, tried hard not to listen to their snide remarks about the matter.

Elsewhere, Maggie had also taken notice of the scene that had just unfolded, though her empty expression didn't betray any inherent interest in what she had seen.

" _And people are afraid of that guy? Pathetic..._ " she noted apathetically.

...

 _Royal Woods Elementary School_

Lucy, as always, remained quiet during her classes, not talking to anyone and listening carefully to her respective teachers lecturers.

School was something Lucy has ever been ecstatic about, not because she was a poor student, quite the contrary. While not necessarily a model scholar, the young goth generally got good grades, being an introvert and having had a lot time to herself (whether she wanted it or not) gave her plenty of opportunity to dive her nose deep into various books, whether they were for her studies or some horror related novel she would immerse herself into.

It was the fact that she would be subjected to the cruel scorn, scrutiny and outright mockery and bullying from her peers that made her dread this place. For nearly two years she had endured this treatment and kept it quiet from her family, who didn't pay her much attention and she asumed wouldn't want to be bothered with her problems, leaving her to bottle up her feelings of pain, which only helped craft her goth persona more, the quiet, emotionless little girl with a seemingly apathetic outlook on life.

But things had recently changed quite a bit for her and her family. They now knew what she went trough on a daily bases and contrary to what her younger self would have assumed, they were willing to do whatever they could to help her, giving the goth some newfound hope whenever she entered the otherwise bleak and merciless learning facility.

Lincoln, her only brother, had always been the one sibling she felt the closet to, he was the only one who would listen to her and willing sacrifice his spare time for her, granted he did that with all nine of his sister, but he gave the goth a sense of comfort, a place (or rather a person) that showed her compassion and allowed her to be herself while showing her acceptance and understanding, despite her weird appearance and interests.

More recently she found someone else like that in the most unlikely of places, her teen sister Luan, the comedian who by all means should have been her exact opposite, yet she turned out to understand her better and have more in common with the little goth than anyone else in their big family, as she had faced and still faces the same ostracizing and scorn as Lucy does simply for being weird in the eyes of her peers.

Luan couldn't be there for her little sister while they were in school, but Lincoln could and ever since he was able to return to school after his accident, he tried everything he could to make her time here easier, from keeping her close to him during recess to outright threatening her tormentors with physical retribution, which almost got him into trouble a few times. Lincoln was anything but tough, but he did have the advantage of being bigger and up to three years older than the oposition, which was usually enough to make them back off.

During class Lucy had few opportunities to shine, bragging about her better grades towards the lazy lackwitts she went to class with she knew wouldn't faze them much, but the one place where she could truly shine and stand tall was when her class would be presenting the poems they had written.

Poetry was her passion and while the other kids didn't care much about it, her teacher saw her hard work and the potential she exhibited, she praised her work and advised her to nurture her talent, but also suggested to the young goth to try and use lighter and more hopeful themes, like something or someone that was near and dear to her. Lucy had taken that advice with todays poem.

She laughs, Lucy frowns, but she knew they were the same deep down. Facing danger wasn't something he usually dared, but when she needed him he was instantly prepared. Her little sister could be loud and gross, but her compassion and their mutual fondness for animals Lucy valued the most.

Those are some of the things she told her class today and for once Lucy couldn't care less about their sneering and apathetic looks.

...

It was soon time for recess and unlike most kids Lucy wasn't stampeding out. She returned some of her books to her locker following English class, when she heard some mocking voices behind her. Hearing those annoying voices, the goth quietly slipped something out of her locker and into her palm.

"Hey Ghoul Gal, why where you yawning so much today? Too busy haunting your house last night?" said a boy from her class. He and his friend snickered cruelly at her.

Lucy clenched her fist, but also remembered images from her nightmare. She had been the most psychologically scarred out of all the siblings from the attack. The monster that had terrorized them during their camping trip was dead, she saw him die, yet it was like its spirit haunted her dreams almost every night. After closing her eyes Lucy would find herself reliving events from that terrible day, the fear, the terror, the beast would return to pursue her, she saw its yellow eyes, she saw its grinning maw, she felt the sharp pain in her waste when it snatched her. Those night terrors wouldn't leave her, they kept tormenting her.

And how did the kids react to finding out that she had been mauled by a wild animal, did they finally show her any sympathy? No, apparently a "freak" like her wasn't worthy of even basic human compassion, at most they remained withdrawn and awkward around her at first, but once those stitches were removed things were back to normal, some even mocked her for the attack and her trauma, like when they noticed her freaking out in the presence of dogs or taking her novels to play "keep away" and noticing that she stopped reading anything werewolf related.

"Yeah, you look even paler than usual!" the other one mocked her too. The two high fived at the formers "brilliant" zinger. Lucy didn't bother facing them.

"Don`t you idiots have anything better to do?" she asked them coldly and emotionlessly.

"Oh look, it talks!" they snickered again. Lucy remained quite in tranquil anger, facing away from them.

"And what was up with that sappy song about loving your family..." one of them snickered obnoxiously while pocking her in the side, pass her backpack.

"Yeah, usually you just mope and drabble on about how dark and miserable the world is, you freak!"

"You`re acting like it's wrong to care about your family." the goth asked coldly. The boys huffed and chuckled.

"Like you actually care for your stupid sisters and brother? You don't care about anything, you're just a sad, lifeless weirdo who hides behind dumbsters, mopes about looking like a zombie and makes out with her precious vampire statue."

As their cruel laughter echoed in her ears, Lucy narrowed her eyes. Enough was enough.

"Sigh. You're right, I don't care about my family, never did. Emotions are a weaknesses and I can't afford weakness where I`m heading..." The boys stopped giggling and looked at her oddly.

"As for my poem, I just thought it would be common decency to give my family one last farewell letter, before I end their miserable lives in order to complete my transformation." she continued in a haunting tone. The boys became confused and a bit disturbed.

"Trans-Wut trasformation?" one of them drawled dumbly.

"Why do you think I have been so sleepy lately. I`ve spent weeks stalking the night, draining the blood out of any expendable mortal I came across, all to further my transformation into a pureblooded vampire. My family should provide enough of the red nectar to complete my transformation. But maybe they won't be enough..."

Lucy abruptly turned and hissed at the boys. They gasped and yelped when they saw two large fang protruding from her gaping mouth and ran away screaming.

Once they were gone Lucy let the tiniest bit of a smirk appear on her face before taking out the fake Dracula fangs and tucking them into her backpack.

" _I`ll have to thank Luan for the idea_ ". She felt proud of herself as she went down the hallway towards the main entrance. She's been called a monster, ghoul, ghost, zombie, vampire countless times, so if the kids insisted that she was a monster, why not make them happy she thought.

There was always a way to turn a disadvantage into an advantage. If they wouldn't respect or accept her, she could at least make them too scared of her to bully her.

Once outside, Lucy tried to find her brother. He insisted that she stay close to him as much as she could, to the point of being overprotective, not that she necessarily minded it.

Suddenly she was tripped and hit the payvment. A familiar cruel laughter loomed over her as as an arm pinned her down and grabbed something out of her backpack.

"Watch your footing vampire, don't wanna be the klutz of the underworld." Chandler laughed before examining the book he took from her.

Looking up, Lucy felt fear as the redhead glared down at her, his smile twisting into a vicious grin. "What`s this, another vampire soap opera? . And I thought you had _some_ taste." he shook his head disapprovingly.

"Give it back!" Lucy cried and tried to stand up, only for Chandler to forcefully push her down.

"Don`t interrupt me you little rat!" he snapped at her, before adopting a more superficially friendly expression.

"Why are you readin` such shit now? What ever happened to those books of yours about vampires facing off against werewolves-Oh right!" he slapped himself on the head comically before sneering at the goth.

"You don't like wolves anymore. Not after one tried takin` a few nips out of you." he snickered.

To emphasize his point, Chandler formed his hand like a puppet and started nipping with it at Lucy.

"Stop it..." Lucy cried and tried to push his arm from pinching her "... and give me back my book?"

"Sorry, can't do. I`ll need it to make some confetti!" Chandler quipped before someone suddenly snatched the book from his grasp.

"Leave her alone!" Lincoln yelled as he pushed the bully away from Lucy and helped her get up. Seeing her brother, Lucy felt relieved and instantly hung on to him for protection.

Getting his footing, Chandler glared at his long time rival, before smirking. "Ah still playin` _white_ knight for the princess of gloom, eh?" he asked mockingly.

"I told you to leave her alone! Now piss off!" Lincoln threatened. Chandler laughed.

"Uhh, don't use such bad words Lincoln, your momma might spank you for it-oh wait, you don't have a momma anymore!" Lincoln fumed inwardly, but kept his composer.

"I`m not in the mood for your stupid games Chandler! Now beat it!" Lincoln tried to leave with his sister, but Chandler started following them.

"Or what dorko?" the redhead mocked "...are you gonna get rough with me?"

Lincoln glared back at him."Don`t test my patience you idiot!" he threatened. Chandler tilted his head with an amused expression.

"Don`t push your luck loser!" he replied in a cocky tone. Suddenly Lincoln charged at him, making Chandler jump back a few steps when Lincoln stopped in his track. Seeing Chandler`s scared expression, Lincoln turned around without another word and led Lucy away, leaving Chandler stunned.

" _When the hell did Lincoln grow a backbone?"_ he wondered angrily.

Once they were far away from the bully, Lucy sighed with relief and smiled at her brother.

"Thank you Lincoln." she said in a small voice.

Seeing his sister safe made Lincoln`s features soften up.

"It was nothing Luce, I`d do anything for you." he replied humbly.

"Still...that was pretty brave of you."

"Lucy, I didn't survive a wolf attack and the terror of Lyle and Taylor just so I could go back to being intimidated by a playground meanies like him..." Lincoln joked before growing a slightly more serious tone "...things will be different now, Chandler`s fun time is over."

He smiled at his sister. "Now come on Lucy. Dad has packed our lunch and we can eat together."

"That...would be nice." Lucy agreed, genuine happiness forming in her usually stoic tone...

...

"You know you`re not makin` this easy?" an annoyed Lynn crossed her arms and sported a disapproving scowl in front of Taylor, while he grabbed a book from his locker. Not looking at her, he sighed.

"Can you please drop it Lynn, we're gonna have to shlog trough algebra now, I don't need two headache inducin` lecturers at the same time." he snarked flatly.

"No, I won't drop it! Those are my friends and you think it's funny to mock them and threaten them?" she retorted, raising her voice.

Taylor looked at her, his lip started curling upward. "Lynn, come on, you know I was just messin` around. You people should lighten up and learn to take a joke."

"Well it wasn't funny to them." she told him bluntly.

"Hey, I can't help it if those wusses wet their pants at the sight of me, that's their fault. I just try to make the most of it. Besides I never hurt any one of them." he shrugged.

"And makin` fun of Margo`s nose doesn't count? You do know she's sensitive about it?"

Taylor scoffed. "You`re bein` overdramatic, people should learn that's it's okay to make fun of your own peculiarities." he reasoned.

It was Lynn`s time to scoff. "Right.." she stated sarcastically "...and if I made cracks about your appearance, and I can think of ten of the top of my head, you'd be okay with it?"

Taylor`s face dropped. "Touche." he uttered dryly and suddenly passed by Lynn.

"What do you-HEY where are you goin`?" she caught up to him and they walked down the hall.

"To math class, don't wanna be late." he answered plainly.

"Yeah right, since when did you care about being punctual?" Lynn snarked with a deadpan look.

"You know me too well." he smirked at her.

"Don`t change the subject." she snapped. "I`ve been tryin` to help you fit in for weeks, but you keep actin` like a jerk to my friends."

"Well they didn't exactly accept me with open arms." Taylor droned.

"Of course they wouldn't, you've terrorized the whole neighborhood for 3 months..." Lynn pointed out the obvious, but slowly calmed down "... but we could change that you know? If you would just show them your nicer side...the side I have seen?"

"I don't think that`s an option." Taylor replied

"Why?" Lynn looked puzzled.

The boy took a serious expression."I`ve told you before, if they don't fear me, all the kids would tear me apart. Don't act like it isn't true, if you hadn't insisted upon it and if they didn't worry that I would pummel them, they never would have wanted anything to do with me, bully or not. It has always been that way for me."

Lynn shot him a "don`t give me that shit" look.

"And I`ve told you before to quit being such a pessimist, why can't you act around other people the way you act around me? I would bet all my sports attire that if you just acted nicer people would accept you sooner than you would think."

"Bein` nice? Like that has worked out for Luan?" the boy scoffed. Lynn froze, he had her.

As much as she didn't want to buy into his bleak views on the world, the mere mentioning of Luan or Lucy and the ostracizing they have endured would crush any optimism about acceptance she had tried to hammer into him.

Taylor didn't feel any glory about beating her argument, it just reinforced the fact that he was viewed as a monster by his peers for years and seeing one of the few people he cared about looking dishearteningly away from him wasn't pleasant either.

He sighed. "Lynn, I know what you're tryin` to do, I appreciate it, but it won't work. You know that they all hate or fear me, which I`m used to, as does everyone else..."

As they passed trough the hallway various kids either cowered, moved out of the way or just ran in fear of him, further cementing his point.

"They don't hate you, they're..." her voice trailed off "...they just don`t understand you, Ryan."

"There`s a difference?" the boy quipped dryly.

"Yes, you just have to show everyone that they have no reason to fear you."

Taylor snickered."I don't see how we could possibly accomplish that, unless we invite all our classmates to a weekend trip to an abandoned cabin in the Rocky Mountains and we fight off marauding wolves and mountain lions. That seems to be the only way to get me and others closer."

Lynn chuckled lightly and brightened up. "Or, the next time me and the guys come together for somethin`, like a friendly soccer match, just come along, join us and show them that you're no different than anyone else."

"I doubt that will do much." he dismissed the idea. Lynn grew tired of his pessimism and frowned.

"Will you at least give it a try? Do it for me if for nothing else."

Taylor didn't answer, he was hesitant and seemed to be trying to find a way to weasel his way out of it. Noticing this, Lynn decided to use a tactic she would seldom use, unless she was trying to persuave her brother, she looked at Taylor with pleading puppy dog eyes. It worked and Taylor started to crumble.

"Alright, I`ll try..." he groaned begrudgingly. She smiled towards him.

"Thanks Ryan, I promise you it will work...maybe not right of the bat, but it will in do time."

Taylor felt conflicted, he really hadn't enjoyed being forced to have lunch or socialize with people he knew didn't want him around them and whom didn't give a crap about, but up until now that was the only way he could be with Lynn, the only real friend he had in quiet some time, but now that was no longer needed.

"Kay, now that we have settled that, there's somethin` I was trying to ask you all day..." he started.

"What`s that?" Lynn wondered.

"Well, since it's Saturday tomorrow and I'm finally free, I thought you and I could, you know, hang out together, just the two of us." he asked casually.

Lynn felt stunned for a second.

"Wait are you...askin` me out? Lynn asked him suspiciously, starting to feel nervous, though she wasn't quite sure why.

Taylor felt flustered after hearing her response, his palms were sweating and his heart was pounding. But on the outside he kept his cool.

"Huh? Eh? No I was just wonderin` if you wanted to hang out with me, you know as friends. We didn't get the chance to do that so far, to have fun and spend time together, alone." he clarified with a calm exterior.

"Oh...I see." Lynn replied, trying to hide her blush, feeling stupid and wanting to kick herself for even asking such a question. "Sure, I would love to. What did you have in mind?"

"Cool, and well nothing specific, maybe get a bite to it, stroll around in the park, and you could come home with me to shoot some hoops. I know you miss havin` your own backyard to play in."

"Heh, I do, it sucks not bein` able to play sports in private when I want to..." Lynn reminiscent about the time she and her family had better living conditions. Getting some space for the weekend out of her dingy apartment cramped with 5 siblings and her father sounded pretty tempting.

"So where should I meet you?" she asked.

"I dunno, I still got no phone to call you if somethin` comes up, so how about I just drop at your place, you know this town better than me anyway..."

Suddenly they both felt an arm being thrown over their shoulders, followed by an annoying and familiar giggle.

"Hey guys!"

"Luan..." they both groaned, seemingly annoyed to see her. The comedian let go and turned to face her younger sister. Lynn looked at her oddly.

"Luan...are you feelin` alright?" Lynn was already feeling dread from the giddy look that was plastered on the comedian`s face.

"I`m sorry if I was interrupting anything..." Luan snickered suggestively.

"You weren't, we were headin` to math class..." Taylor answered dryly.

"Really? Well I just hope you two don't get divided." Luan chuckled, but Taylor just looked at her with confusion.

"Wut?" he cocked his brow.

Luan deflated, her atemp at making a joke fell flat as usual. But she quickly perked up.

"Oh, it's just that I couldn't help but overhear you asking Lynn out on a date." Luan told him nonchalantly before looking back at Lynn.

"Hihihi, dad`s not gonna be happy if he hears about it, but don't worry, me and the others won't tell anyone sis."

Lynn was slowly turning red from anger and embarrassment. "This is not a date you numbskull..." she flailed her arms angrily "...it`s-WAIT A MINUTE, have you`ve been spying on us!" Lynn pointed an accusing finger at the comedian.

"Maybe..." Luan chuckled sneakily while fiddling her fingers. As Lynn trembled with anger, Taylor, meanwhile, rubbed the bridge of his nose in annoyance.

Luan was the only one of Lynn`s siblings with whom he has had any interaction since the camping trip and so far he had learned three major things about her : she sucked at comedy, she was perhaps the most unpopular kids at school, and she couldn't keep her nose out of other peoples business.

"Well if you were spyin` on us Funny Girl, and I use that nickname very loosely, then you must have heard the part where I specifically said that I wasn't askin` Lynn out, so please do us a favor and take your second rate attempt to get a rise out of people somewhere else, I am the master of annoying people..." he finished with a smirk.

Luan pffed and waved her hand dismissively "Oh don't use that ol` excuse on me pal, all guys and girls say that about their first date, before the "acciental" kiss happens that is." she winked at him smugly.

Taylor stood unfazed.

"And you know about these kind of things...how?" Taylor smirked as Luan`s cocky expression dropped like a boulder.

"Oh that was low, even for you Ryan." she said coldly while pointing her finger at Taylor.

"Thanks, I always try." he shrugged.

Lynn, who had managed to cool down, suddenly grabbed Luan by both arms and pulled her face to face, staring her right in the eye. "Listen to me and listen very carefully." she told her slowly and sternly, like if she was trying to talk to a toddler.

"It not a date, we`re just two friends hanging out together. There's nothin` else goin` on. You're not goin` to tell anybody that I have a date since I DON'T. And under no circumstances, any circumstances are you or the others goin` to stalk me tomorrow tryin` to "help me", since no helpin` will be required, since this is NOT a date. Do? You? Understand?"

Luan blinked for a few seconds, then looked at Taylor, then back at her sister. She suddenly smiled. "Oh I get!" she answered in an understanding tone.

"Good." Lynn sighed with relief and let her go.

"Well it was nice seeing you again Ryan, but I have to go." she exclaimed and went her own way..

But before she left, Luan stopped and whispered something into Lynn`s ear.

" _I get ya. You and I will talk about this in private. I`ll help ya get pretty. By!_ " and with that the comedian was gone.

Lynn groaned desperately and covered her face. She and Taylor entered the classroom and sat together at a desk.

Lynn still looked irked from her sisters remarks, Taylor not so much. Though one thing that Luan mentioned did peek his curiosity.

"Say, what was that about your siblings stalkin` you?" the boy inquired.

Lynn felt embarrassed to explain it to him, especially since she was a part of it. She sighed.

"Well...me and my sisters kind of had a bad habit in the past to stalk Lincoln when he met a girl, tryin` to help him not to screw up and such. Usually it ended with the girl bein` scared away by us instead." Lynn explained, feeling embarrassed of her involvement.

Taylor`s jaw dropped."Wow! Wow! Hold it there..." he looked at her with a dumbfounded expression.

"...the pipsqueak had dates!? More than one!?"

...

 **And that's it for the first chapter, I wrote it to show how the characters have been doing since the last story. Obviously, being friends with the former terror of the neighborhood has placed Lynn in an awkward position, for more reasons than one, while Lincoln is more determined than ever to keep Lucy safe after their last excursion. Originally I thought about showing more with the Lincoln and Lucy part, but I didn't want to have this first chapter go on for too long so I decided to save the rest for the next chapter. Spoilers, Chandler isn't done picking on Lucy...**

 **I have never actually seen the one episode from the show featuring Chandler, but that isn't necessary cuz as far as my experience with LH fics has taught me, the only requirement for his character in fan works is "be a dick to Lincoln...and possibly his little sisters", and I think I delivered on that very minimal requirement. XD**


	2. One Really Lousy Day

**Can't believe that three weeks have passed since I've posted the first chapter, but then again I'm in no rush. This one will be all about Lincoln and Lucy, and let's just say that things will get a bit rough for them here...**

Lincoln and Lucy were sitting together at a bench near the edge of the schools playground, close to a cluster of trees and bushes, where Lincoln hoped that his sister could find some privacy from any would-be bullies. Recess was almost over and the siblings were finished with their lunch, Lucy was finishing sipping her juice box while Lincoln was allowed to see his sisters poem, which she had brought with her.

"I gotta say, this is pretty good Lucy." he told her with admiration.

"You really think so?" she asked in a small voice, quietly hidding her joy.

"I do, you really have a knack for this and your teacher was right, you can do more light-hearted poems just as well." Lincoln replied sincerely.

Lucy felt a bit flustered, it wasn't often that she would be complimented for anything. "Thank you. That...means a lot." she told him quietly.

"I just wonder..." Lincoln suddenly asked out of curiosity "...why does your poem only mention me, dad, Luan and Lana?"

Lucy stiffened a bit at that question and fidgeted uncomfortably before answering him somewhat hesitantly.

"Well..eh... said that we had to keep it short, only like five or six strophes at most, and I had a lot that I wanted to say about you four...so..."

"Oh, I see..." Lincoln answered understandably. He knew that Lucy probably wasn't being entirely truthful with him, but he understood why. Half of their family had moved out before Lucy had even tried to bond with any of them, and as for their remaining siblings, while she felt no animosity towards them, Lynn and Lisa obviously weren't exactly the goths favorite people in the world.

Lincoln had eventually been forced to see that for himself, as much as they all initially hoped that they could spend more time together and forge stronger bonds, their radically different interests still proved to be a massive hurdle to overcome. And while some of them did grow closer, others struggled to find much common ground with the rest of their siblings, especially Lynn and Lisa.

Lincoln eventually settled on simply enjoying all of his sisters company whenever they got together for some family fun, and appreciated how in general they all developed a better understanding and appreciation for each other, even if they couldn't be as close to some of their respective siblings as they may have wanted.

Noticing that recess was almost over Lucy decided to ask her brother a question which she's been pondering about for a while.

"Lincoln? she started in a small voice.

"Yes?" he answered, getting out of his thoughts. Sighing, Lucy continued.

"I`ve been thinking about something lately. I`ve talked with Luan about it, but I wanted to hear your opinion on it."

"Sure, what is it about?", Lincoln noticed the uncertainty in her voice.

"Well, remember how Lola sometimes stayed at home and did her school work there while she was preparing for beauty pageants?"

The boy was confused for a moment. That was a rather...random topic for the goth to bring up, until he quickly connected the dots.

"You`re thinking about switching to being homeschooled?" he deduced her intention. Lucy nodded. After that she said nothing, Lincoln rubbed his head.

"I...I don't know what to say about it?" he said with all honesty.

"I`ve been considering it for weeks, I think this might be for the best..." Lucy continued, remaining withdrawn.

"I`m not sure about that Lucy? I mean doesn't being homeschooled have it's drawbacks, like not getting to see more of the world and...like not learning to socilize?" Lincoln rambled, still not sure what to make of this.

His sister looked at him with a more serious expression. "I don't see a reason to keep coming here, no one likes me, everyone treats me with scorn and disdain, I just feel miserable being in this place, plus I hate being a burden to you here." she confessed.

Hearing that again broke Lincoln`s heart. "Lucy, I told you before. You`re my sisters and I would protect you and help you out no matter what, and I really do enjoy spending time with you during break." he told her reassuringly.

"But having me here scares away your friends away?" Lucy pointed out solemnly.

Lincoln paused, not knowing how to respond to that. It was true that his friends didn't want to have Lucy hanging around them, and Lucy was no naive kid, she noticed it and knew the reason for their more and more frequent absence from seeing Lincoln during recess, he couldn't just lie to her about it.

Lincoln felt some anger and a sense of betrayal from his friends for making his little sister feel even more unwanted, but alas he had to see it from their point of view as well. None of them felt any real contempt for her, but they were all very uncomfortable and even unnearved being in her presence, not helped by Lucy doing things like "reading" Clyde`s palm and telling him that he would die in a car accident once he turned 32 or having Rusty pull one of her fortune telling cards which "predited" that he would suffer some vauge, but terrible fate.

He tried telling them not to take these things seriously, as they were all just Lucy`s (very morbid) imaginary games and nothing more, but that fell on deaf ears. Lincoln had to face the fact that his sisters behavior would be very off putting to anyone who didn't know her personally. Not that anyone outside their family, to his knowledge, had tried to get to know her, but Lincoln knew that it wasn't right to try and force people to do it either.

But he couldn't just tell her not to be herself and act diffrently, it would be a terrible and inconsiderate thing to do in his mind, especially after repeatedly telling her that there was nothing wrong with her and that she should be proud off and embrace her true self.

He was stuck between a rock and a hard place on this one.

"I know they're afraid of me. I`m used to that. " Lucy added. Seeing her sad expression Lincoln tried to cheer her up.

"It not like that Lucy. They...just don't understand you. And besides it's no big deal, I don't mind being alone with you during recess, my friends haven't turned their backs on me or anything, we still hang together out of school as much as before. Why today we're all going to the mall to get an autograph from Rip Hardcore." he tried to encourage her.

"If you say so..." Lucy mumbled before Lincoln put his arm comfortingly around her and pulled her closer.

"Trust me Lucy, you haven't ruined anything for me. And beyond that, you`re only in 3rd grade, you might make some friends eventually. Maybe you shouldn't throw that chance away just yet?"

"I can't see that happening, no one wants to be caught dead with me..." she mumbled solemnly while slightly resting her head against his chest. Lincoln, meanwhile, sighed inwardly. It didn't feel right to him to just let his little sister effectively lock herself away from the world, but he simply couldn't think of any solid reason to discourage her from it. 

"Lucy, this is your decision to make. If you think you'll be happier being homeschooled then you have my full support. But remember this, life can sometimes surprise you, people can surprise you, if..."

Lincoln paused, he didn't like using this example, but he couldn't think of any others at the moment.

"If Taylor of all people can have some sort of epiphany and commit a surprising act of heroism, then anyone could change."

Lucy remained quiet for a bit, before replying in a hoarse voice. "Okay...I`ll...think about it some more. " Lincoln smiled, though he remained unsure if he gave his sister the best of advice.

At that moment, Lincoln`s phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket.

"You got a message?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah...it`s from Luan." Lincoln paused to read it until his face dropped in surprise.

" _You`ve gotta be kidding me!_ "

This was definitely a surprise, part of Lincoln was hoping that Luan was just being overzealous and blowing things out of proportions, in the same vein that all of his older sisters tended to react whenever they caught wind that Lincoln had any sort of interaction with a girl, but on the other hand it was something that the boy was subconsciously dreading would happen eventually.

Lucy noticed her brothers less than enthusiastic reaction. "Wha does it say?" she asked curiously. Lincoln looked at her, feeling an odd mixture of disbelief and disgust, as he was still struggling to register the news himself.

"She says that Lynn is going on a date tomorrow...with Taylor?" he answered, cringing on almost every single word.

The goths usually stoic face cringed uncomfortably as well from the sudden news before looking away and visibly shuddering.

"Gross..." she said in a subdued tone "...I wasn't expecting Lynn of all our sisters to be looking for a boyfriend. Especially _him_." she finished with a hint of disgust.

Lincoln`s eye twitched and he felt a bit nauseated at Lucy`s choices of words. He looked back at the message before forcibly snorting.

"Lynn? Dating? Not in a million years. I`m pretty sure Luan`s just trying to duke us."

"I dunno, lately Lynn's been acting more and more positive whenever she mentions him, as icky as that is." the goth countered, though she definitely didn't want to be right about it.

Lincoln felt his skin crawl, he hadn't seen or heard of Taylor in a month, not that he was complaining about it in any way, but he knew that Lynn had kept in touch with him at school and apparently they were indeed getting closer, hopefully not to the extent that Luan was constantly implying.

For Lincoln, the idea of his sister getting together with that creep just felt wrong and he couldn`t quite comprehend how Lynn made the sudden switch from despising him with a burning passion to liking him. Partially because the last memory he had of Taylor was the bully assaulting his older sisters in a moment of rage before storming off, saying he didn't want anything to do with them.

He was unconscious when the bully allegedly came back to help them. And he latter awoke to reunite with his family at his hospital bed, only to hear how Lynn and Taylor had spent the night together in the latters house just a day after their brutal fight which Lincoln had witnessed.

What they were doing that night or at school he had no idea about, and really didn't want to think about it, and it honestly made him worry about his sister. Lynn denied liking him in that way and claimed that they were only friends and that she was trying to help him turn his life around, which Lincoln was fully willing to believe her, after all why would Lynn lie to him, even if the idea of Taylor feeling any sort of remorse and treating her with respect sounded far fetched to him.

But at the end of the day Lincoln had to give him the benefit of the doubt, even if he didn't like him. He couldn't judge someone he hadn`t seen in a month, people can change and even though he himself hadn't witnessed it, by all accounts Taylor did risk his life to protect his sisters and had apologized for bullying them, and has seemingly walked away from his tyrannical ways.

And either way Lincoln knew one thing. It was still better to keep Taylor on friendly terms with them, rather than have him be their enemy, even if he only cared about Lynn and didn't give a crap about the rest of them, which Lincoln was quite certain to be the case.

He looked back at Lucy and smiled awkwardly. "Lets not jump to conclusions. You know how Luan is, for that matter you know how she, Luna, Leni and Lori would get all squealy and over excited whenever romance or dating or any of that mushy stuff would be brought up. It's some weird teen mentality that I, for the life of me, can't understand. Even Lynn would get like that when she heard that I talked to a girl."

Remembering that, Lincoln felt a small chuckle coming up, as annoying as it was at the time, in retrospect it was kind of hysterical how overzealous and misguided his sisters could be when they got it into their head that "ther baby brother found a girlfriend".

Lucy made a small smile, feeling a bit more jovial. "Well I always told them that talking over a comic book with a girl doesn't mean that you're looking for the future , but..." her tone turned a bit more somber "...they never really listened to me, did they?"

"Yeah, I`m glad that Lynn and Luan at least got the memo after I finally gave them a piece of my mind, you'd be surprised how many girls in my class actually like the same stuff I do, like Ace Savvy or AARGGH, and now I can actually breathe in piece and try to make more friends without worrying that my big sisters will come in, embarrass me and scare them off."

"Yeah, but now it seems that Luan`s turned her sights on poor Lynn..." Lucy smirked inwardly, it felt poetic that Lynn would get the same treatment, a little taste of her own medicine.

"Yeah, but I do feel bad for Lynn, no one deserves to deal with a "medding sister", at least she doesn't have to deal with five of them." Lincoln pointed out.

"Lincoln? I don't understand, why are older girls even so obsessed with that sort of stuff?" Lucy suddenly asked him. He looked at her oddly.

"I mean...me, Lana and Lola always thought that it is gross and icky." the goth specified.

Lincoln chuckled "Me neither, I mean I don't mind playing with girls, especially if they know their way in the arcade, but I would never want to date one, that would be just ...weird."

"And I would never want to kiss a boy..." Lucy shuddered at the thought "...because, no offence, but everyone knows that boys carry cooties, which make your intestines disolve and cause your skin be covered in warts and blisters."

"Lucy, I`m pretty sure that's not actually a real disease." Lincoln snorted in amusement.

"Maybe, but it's still not worth taking the chance." Lucy voiced her certainty.

Suddenly they heard the bell ringing.

"Well, looks like it's time to get back to class." Lincoln said with disappointment. He and Lucy were ready to go when they heard some kids calling Lincoln`s name.

"It`s Clyde and the guys. Wonder what they want?" Lincoln mused. Lucy looked away sadly.

"Well, I guess you shouldn't keep them waiting." she told him, trying not to sound too sad. She was disappointed to let her brother go, but recess was over anyway and she didn't want to look like she was hogging him all day like a needy toddler.

"Whatever it is, I`m sure they can wait, I`d rather make sure no one bothers you on your way back." Lincoln replied to her.

Looking back at his sister, Lincoln saw her grow the faintest hint of a smirk. Lucy thought it was very sweet of him to be this concerned, but even she had her limits when it came to his overprotectiveness.

"You know I can walk myself back to class without an escort, I`m not that helpless." she pointed out, her voice carrying a rare underlining tone humor. This made Lincoln feel a bit sheepish.

"Oh...well...if you`re okay with it." he rubbed his neck.

"I am, go see you friends, I`ll...eh...see you and Lana after school." she replied, trying to sound more confident.

"Okay then, see ya later Luce." Lincoln waved at her as he took off to meet his friends.

The goth waved back until he was out of sight, after which her face dropped into a disappointed frown.

"Sigh." she was all alone again.

" _Better get back to class, I got nothing better to do anyway_."

Lucy tried to leave, but as she started walking, she heard a brief rustle in the bushes. She quickly turned around but saw nothing and the noise was gone. Most kids wouldn't have thought much of that, but for Lucy that very sound brought back some haunting memories that made her feel uneasy.

Not wanting to think about them again, she quickened her pace towards the school entrance, but then she felt something touching her on the shoulder. Spooked, Lucy instantly turned her head.

"RAAARGH!"

...

Lincoln meanwhile caught up with Clyde, Liam, Zach and Rusty.

"Hey guys, where have you been?" Lincoln greeted them, trying to act like nothing was bothering him, and already knowing their answer.

"Hey Linc..." Clyde high fived him before growing a bit nervous "...oh...and...well..you know, we couldn't find you an.."

"But I`ve been going to the same place during recess for a week now..." Lincoln replied somewhat exasperatedly.

"Oh...yeah...silly me...I..." the spectacled boy stuttered, while the others exchanged worried and/or annoyed glance. Rusty spoke up to save Clyde.

"Well, we heard you were going there with your sister and we didn't want to barge in on your quality time with her." he added quickly. Lincoln gave him an unconvinced look making the redhead start to sweat .

"And I explained to the others how much this meant to you, cuz I know how it is, me and Rocky always cherish our bro time and don't like being interrupted..." he rambled on.

"Oh, okay I understand, I appreciate it guys..." Lincoln cut him off and quickly noticed how both Clyde and Rusty wore obvious expressions of relief, he knew they were making it up on the spot, but he didn't want to push things further. There was no point to it.

After a bit of an awkward silence Clyde tried to break the ice by changing the topic.

"So, Linc.." he started, getting more composed "...are you excited to finally meet Rip Hardcore in person!"

The question got the white-haired boy more excited. "Heck yeah! I`ve been dreaming about this moment for a month!" Lincoln exclaimed.

"Me too!" Rusty chimed in "That guy is the greatest adventure ever, why I can`t..."

A little girls scream cut him off and the boys looked around in confusion. Lincoln quickly recognized that voice.

" _Lucy!_ "

Without a second thought he bolted away.

"Lincoln, where are you..." Clyde called after him, but got no response. The boys exchanged glances before following after their friend.

...

The sight. It made her scream with horror and stumble back in fright. She fell to the ground and glanced up at the thing that attacked her. She was paralyzed by fear and her heart started pounding like crazy. Over her stood a kid wearing a wrinkly, red eyed werewolf mask, growling and making mock lunges at her.

Anyone else would have instantly recovered after the initial fright, but not Lucy, her mind didn't even register that she was looking at a person, she only saw the snarling wolf head facing her. She found herself in a tent again, facing the black-furred, one-eyed wolf again. She wanted to run, but she couldn't move, she couldn't turn her head or close her eyes, she was forced to stare into his one piercing eye, it was devoid of emotion or thought, just bloodthirsty rage, he bared his maw of razor sharp fangs and his growl rumbled trough her. The petrified goth couldn't escape, consumed with anxiety she gasped for air and cried until the wolf finally lunged at her. Things turned dark and blurry as she relived the painful sensation of his jaws clamping down on her waist.

Lincoln arrived to see his sister down on the ground curled up, shaking violently, sobbing and shielding her face, Lincoln`s heart sank with worry, he had seen her like this before. All around her various kids, from first graders to sixth graders, came as well after they had heard her scream, pointing, talking to each other, exchanging glances, snickering or laughing at her. Standing over his sister was the kid with the moth-eaten Halloween mask, holding his sides as he exploded with laughter. Cruel, mocking laughter. Laughter that Lincoln has heard hundreds of times before and which set of a fire in his belly.

"Hello! Anyone there?" Chandler waved his hand in front of the traumatized Lucy. He`s little prank had worked a lot better than he had expected. He expected her to cry and run, but not to drop down in a fetus position. Not that he minded it. Seeing as Lucy was unresponsive, he straightened himself up and observed the crowd he had attracted with satisfaction.

"You all see this!" he exclaimed by pointing at the goth.

"Looks like everyone`s favorite Ghoul Gal is scared shitless by a stupid store mask..." he paused as he couldn't help but laugh some more, now joined by most of the onlookers.

"So much for bein` a fan of Halloween, huh? What a pathetic poser-AH" suddenly he was pushed out of the way by an enraged Lincoln. The crowd, including Lincoln`s friends gasped in surprise as Chandler hit the ground. Lincoln didn't bother with him any further and immediately kneeled down in front of Lucy, trying to help her get up.

"Lucy! Lucy! Please get up!" he pleaded. Feeling her brothers presence the goth kneeled up and quickly hugged him tightly, burying her face into his chest, still sobbing and gasping. She couldn't hear any of his following words, as she saw flashes of herself being pinned underneath him, him crying in pain as the wolf mauled him from above.

"Lucy please! Everything is alright, you're safe!" Lincoln desperately tried to calm her while holding her tightly in his embrace, but she kept weeping and shaking.

He turned his glare towards Chandler, Lincoln clenched his teeth as he could feel Chandler smirking sadistically under the mask. His snickering only infuriated him further.

"You idiot! You think this is funny!?" Lincoln snapped at him.

"Well..." Chandler began in a chipper tone "...yeah, yes I do. And it would appear that they agree with me dorko." He meant the surrounding crowd who were all giggling or straight up hollering with laughter. This made Lincoln`s blood boil, which only got worse as Chandler started coming closer to them in a cocky manner.

"Get away from us!" Lincoln snarled threateningly. Chandler laught under the mask.

"Ah cool your head Ace Sissy and learn to take a joke!" the redhead exclaimed mockingly. Lincoln`s eyes started bulging with mad furry.

"You think this is a joke?! Look what you have done to her!" Unmoved by the formers outburst, Chandler pffed and crossed his arm.

"Not my fault she overreacted. I didn't think my genius prank would make her wet her undies and cry like a big baby. She`s probably so stupid that she still thinks I`m a real wolf!" he started laughing, while Lincoln glared at him with intense anger. At that very moment something inside of him snapped.

In the blink of an eye, he lunged at Chandler, grabbed him by the shirt with one hand and ripped the mask off his head with the other. Before the redhead could even react, Lincoln`s fist collided with his left eye. The crowd once again gasped as Chandler hit the ground. The noise shook Lucy out of her trance and she saw her brother standing between her and the motionless Chandler. Her brother`s chest was expanding rapidly as he stood over Chandler, breathing like an enraged animal.

"Wow...nice jab Lincoln." an awstruck Clyde commented, while many of the other kids were likewise silenced by the turn of events, before starting to laugh and point at Chandler.

He sat up while holding the left side of his face and immediately locked eyes with Lincoln, who meanwhile had finally calmed down from his rage induced trance and now couldn't believe that he had done what he had just done.

Fueled by the laughter aimed at him, Chandler`s face started contorting with more and more anger as he glared daggers at Lincoln.

"You just made a grave mistake..." Chandler growled coldly before lunging at Lincoln with immense speed. Before he knew it, Lincoln was pinned against the ground as Chandler grabbed him by his hair and forcefully pushed his head into the ground with one arm and slammed his fist across Lincoln`s face. Freeing one of his arms, he grabbed Chandlers arm and bit into it, breaking his skin.

Chandler screamed and Lincoln kicked him off him. Waisting no time Lincoln attacked him and punched him in the chest before slamming his fist across the back of Chandlers head. Chandler quickly grabbed hold of Lincolns shirt and pulled him foward. He used his knee to kick his opponent in the gut.

Lincoln gasped before Chandler grabbed him in a headlock. The crowd started cheering and chanting "Fight! Fight!", exept for Lincoln`s friends who looked on in horror, as did Lucy.

It wasn't long before the commotion attracted some more unwanted attention.

It was Clyde who, while frantically looking around, saw Mrs. Johnson looking out of the window and seeing the crowd of kids who failed to come to class. Clyde looked back at Liam, Zach and Rusty.

"Guys, we have to break them up, or Lincoln will..."

"What`s happening-Lincoln!" Clyde turned abruptly to see Lana pushing her way trough the crowd, gasping with horror as she saw her brother in the middle of a fight. She quickly tried to jump in to help him, but Clyde grabbed her arm.

Lincoln, meanwhile grabbed Chandler by his hair and started pulling it.

"Let me go! I have to help him!" Lana cried, trying to pull herself from Clyde`s grasp.

"No Lana! You`ll get hurt, we`ll handle it!" Clyde shouted at her with concern, while also seeing walking trough the school entrance.

Chandler finally let him go, after Lincoln stomped his foot and kicked his knee. But he didn't react fast enough, as Chandler slammed his elbow into his throat and quickly pinned the white-haired boy to the ground again.

But then Zach and Rusty grabbed him by one arm each and yanked him off Lincoln.

"Let go off me!" Chandler yelled while in their grasp.

Lincoln rose up and glared viciously at Chandler while Clyde came to his side. He saw from the look on his face that his friend wasn't done with the bully yet.

"Linc, get a grip on yourself..." he tried to warn him, but Lincoln charged past him and tried grab Chandler. Fortunately, Clyde and Liam managed to grab and hold him back. Lincoln struggled to get free, trying to get a hold on Chandler when someone else grabbed his arm and carefully pulled him further away .

"What`s going on here!" Lincoln suddenly stopped as he heard Mrs. Johnson`s angry voice. He looked up at her and stopped struggling as the realization of what he had done fully registered. He had gotten himself into deep trouble.

"I`ll tell you what happened! I was just minding my own business when this lunatic attacked me!" Chandler yelled while pointing at Lincoln.

"You liar!" Clyde shot back "You were brutalizing his sister!"

Among the crowd a distraught Lucy watched the scene, seeing Lincoln look down quietly with shame and regret, while his friends and Chandler kept arguing.

"So what? I just did a tincy, harmless prank on her! He was the one punched me..." Chandler argued before glaring back at Lincoln "...now isn't that right, Loud?" he asked venomously, knowing Lincoln probably wouldn't have the guts to lie. Lincoln remained quiet and avoided eye contact.

"Enough. You two can explain it all at Principal Huggin`s office. Lincoln, Chandler, follow me." the teacher quickly ordered them while telling the rest of the kids to return to their classes immediately. Lincoln`s friends followed after him as he was taken away to the principals office.

Lana wanted to follow him too, but then noticed that Lucy was staying behind, standing still and softly sniffing while hugging herself, while everyone else hurried into the building. Seeing her sister distraught, Lana quickly rushed to her aid.

"Lucy! Are you okay? Did Chandler hurt you? Will Lincoln be alright?" she asked her with deep concern while placing her hands on the goths shoulders.

Lucy remained unresponsive and continued to look down while shedding tears.

"Lucy? Come on, say something!" Lana grew more worried and tried to shake her sister out of her trance, but to no avail.

Lucy remained silent. Her brother was in trouble and it was all her fault.

...

School was finally over for this week. Most kids were happily running out to either catch a bus or just walk back home ready to enjoy their weekend. That was not the case with Lucy and Lana who barely even remembered that little tidbit as they had both spent the rest of the day worrying for their brother. They waited near the classroom where they he would come last and as expected Lincoln finally came out along with the rest of his class. A bruise was visible on his cheek.

Seeing his sisters he forced a smile as he walked towards them. The sisters, meanwhile, caught a glimpse of Chandler among the kids and he quickly broke away from the group and started heading towards another room. He was slouched down, had his hand in his pockets and he sent the siblings a hateful glare, which both Lincoln and Lana gladly returned, before entering the classroom.

Seeing that the bully was gone, Lincoln approached his sisters. Before he could get a word in, Lana bombarded him with questions.

"Are you alright Lincoln? What happened with the principal? Will that jerkface get punished?"

Lincoln sighed, but then grew a faint smile. "Yes he will, he has to go to detention..." Lana smiled, but Lincoln then deflated and looked away in shame "...and so do I."

"What? But that's not fair, you were protecting Lucy, how was that a bad thing?" the tomboy didn't understand why her brother got in trouble for protecting his sister. Lincoln unfortunately did.

"Lana, you have to understand, I got into a fight, it doesn't matter why I did it or who threw the first punch, it's against the rules and now I have to face the consequences."

He saw that Lana was on the verge of shedding tears, so he tried to soften the situation.

"But it's not so bad, really. It's just detention for a day, all things considered I`m lucky that I didn't get suspended." he forced a chipper smile.

But Lana didn`t feel any better and frowned dejectedly, Lucy came closer to her brother wearing a face of shame and guilt.

"Lincoln, I`m sorry I got you into this mess..." she muttered sadly. Lincoln petted her on the back and gave her a firm look.

"Lucy, don't be silly, you have nothing to be sorry for, that jerk was harassing you and he went too far today, if he tried that again I would gladly fight him all over again."

Lucy blinked. "But...didn`t you want to go to the mall to get..." she stammered.

"It...it`s just an autograph, I can live without it and besides Clyde promised to get another one for me." Lincoln smiled, trying not to show his immense disappointment to his sisters.

Obviously he was a lot more bumbed out about it than he showed, but he didn't want his sister to wrongfully blame herself over it. With little time left before detention started, the boy made sure to instruct his sister on how to return home safely.

"Now girls you should hurry up to catch that bus and Lucy, I trust you to watch out for Lana and make sure she doesn't get into any trouble on the way back home."

Lucy nodded quietly and Lincoln was forced to leave.

The girls watched their big bother leaving, to endure a punishment he didn't deserve.

"Sigh. Let's go Lana, we can't do anything more for him, let's just go home." Lucy said dejectedly as she took Lana`s hand and they both raced to catch the bus, which they luckily succeed.

But riding back home without their brother felt weird and saddening. They knew Lincoln would be in even more trouble once their father learned about this. They were both determined to defend him, but worried that it wouldn't be of much use.

"Lucy do you think dad will be mad at Lincoln and punish him too." Lana asked sadly.

"Probably..." the goth replied bitterly while looking out the window.

"Well we can't let it happen, we`ll explain to him what Chandler did, I`m sure he`ll understand, right?" the younger sister asked hopefully.

"We can only hope..." Lucy gave her honest answer, still looking out the window. They could try, but Lucy wasn't the kind of person who was high on hope.

As far as Lucy was concerned this day was a total disaster, but at least it couldn't get any worse. Her mind about the whole homeschool thing was also settled.

 **Well there is no worse way to start off your weekend than by having to stay behind for detention, or having someone exploit your postraumatic fears for a cheap laugh, poor Lincoln and Lucy, life just won't give the Louds a break.**

 **And speaking of that, the next chapter will focus once again on the middle school sisters, and let's just say that they too might end up having a very bad day...**


	3. One Really Lousy Day II

**What? It's only been a week? Well looks like I was very fortunate to have had the free time this time around to finish this chapter as quickly as I did. Like I've said last time, we`re now going back to see how Lynn and Luan are doing, and as you`re about to see...well if you thought Linc and Luce had a miserable day, you're in for a treat.**

It should come as no surprise to anyone that Lynn loved gym class more than anything else at school, actually it was the only class she would look foward too. Sure, the tasks that she was required to do were small potatoes for someone with her skills, but nonetheless the jock cherished any opportunity to test her reflexes and her hand to eye coordination. Dodgeball was one of those instances. Frankly she didn't understand why so many students whined or trembled at the mere thought of doing this.

Not Taylor, as he happily joined her side at the frontline of their team, who were more or less relaxed for obvious reason, in sharp contrast to the opposing team who were either cowering or trembling or just cursing for this to be over as quickly as possible as everyone awaited to hear the coaches dreaded whistle.

"Hey Lynn, how about a bet, whoever takes down more of this saps wins. Loser has to buy the winner a drink!" Taylor cheekily asked Lynn.

"You're on it!" the girl huffed confidently. Once the whistle was blown all hell broke lose and the other team quickly started dropping down like flies. In the end Lynn scored nine hits, Taylor five.

"Hah! It`s 9 : 5! I win!" Lynn boasted and jumped triumphantly. She smirked at her friend.

"Loser has to pay his debts!" she laughed. Taylor just shrugged casually.

"Can beat a pro I guess?" He didn't really care much, getting to take out Lynn for a drink was a win in his mind either way. Lynn, meanwhile, noticed that they`ve missed someone on the opposing side, who stood there stiff and unreactive.

"Maggie?" the jock snorted while grabbing the ball "...oh this would be too easy, I just can't do it." she chortled mockingly at the emo girl.

"Here! You do it!" she handed the ball over to Taylor. "Don't want to leave your score as pathetic as it is." she told him teasingly.

"Gladly." Taylor replied nonchalantly before locking eyes with the emo.

"So...eh..Whats-Your-Name? Any last words?" he sneered at her.

"No..." she answered emotionlessly and so quiet that the two could barely hear her "...pain is meaningless, this game is meaningless, nothing matters in this world."

Taylor gave her an exasperated frown. "You emos suck the fun out of everythin`." he drawled sourly before pelting her right in the face and the Maggie dropped. Him and Lynn cheered victoriously.

"You know, you two didn't have to be such ball hoggers." Margo approached them with her arms folded and looking crossed. Taylor casually sneered back at her.

"Oh, don't be such a buzzkill." he said dismissively.

"Yeah, we won, that's all that matters." Lynn patted her friend on the back with a genuine smile.

Margo looked to her side and grumbled. "You mean _you and him_ won." But Lynn didn't hear her, as she rushed back to high five Taylor.

" _Man, I love dodgeball!_ " Lynn thought exuberantly.

...

" _I hate dodgeball! I wish I could just dodge gym class altogether!"_

Luan grumbled to herself as she exited the girls locker-room while rubbing the sore spots where the balls had hit her. Those idiots always seem to forget that one hit is enough to take someone out when it comes to her. Her skin started irritating her on those spots, forcing her to scratch herself.

Luan sighed dejectedly. " _I`m gonna feel that in the morning_."

It was almost over, school was almost over. She kept telling herself that, the weekend was on the horizon, she just had to keep calm, she`s been trough much worse at this wretched place.

History was next and the 13 year old comedian walked straight towards her locker, as she usually tended to do. That was pretty much her routine at school when not being picked on, just go trough with her classes and leave this place as fast as possible. She had nothing meaningful to do her beyond attending her classes, nobody ever talked to her unless they were saying something hurtful, laughing _at_ her or, in the case of one particular classmates of hers, go out of their way to make her life miserable.

Luan had pretty much grown numb to most of that, she was used to being a loner and outcast by now, in the past she would have spent a lot more time wallowing in self pitty, crying and questioning what was wrong with her, still carrying the faintest of hopes that at least someone here would accept her as a friend, but that little bit of hope had vanished a while back.

Her peers would never accept her and she had pretty much grown accustomed to the feeling of loneliness. If they wanted to turn their backs at her, then she would turn her back on them. She has completely stopped bothering trying to talk to anyone, she had also stopped her attempts of being the class clown, it was an entirely pointless and ultimately self-destructive attempt at gaining attention and getting people to like her. Now, frankly, Luan could only bitterly look back at her naive and clueless self from a year ago, ignorance they said was a bliss, until it wore off and the harsh reality came back to bite you in the ass.

Even now as she walked trough the hall, she would occasionally hear other students snickering and/or whispering something to each obviously aimed at her as she passed by, but once again the braces wearing teen had grown numb to that, it was just an every day fact of life for her.

" _Oh look at that, I`m such a laughing stock that my mere presence will make others laugh, I don't have to say or do anything, just being Luan Loud is apparently a joke itself to these idiots. Of whoopty doo, isn't this every comedians dream come true!_ " she thought sarcastically, unaware that someone familiar was watching her pass by from another hallway.

Leaning against her own locker, Kathleen leered deviously at her favorite target, her smile stretching further as she noticed the ponytailed loser scratching her neck in irritation.

" _It`s working like a charm_." she smirked with sadistic glee. At that moment she saw her friend Amber catching up to her.

"I trust that the boys have done their job, they have dismantled the tiers of Professor Shermans car?" the brunette asked her friend with chill confidence. Amber nodded obediently.

" Everything`s taken care off, they even went the extra mile to steal his wig to make sure he doesn't spoil things." Amber eagerly replied.

They both heard the faint voice of their teacher yelling and cursing from the parking space.

Kathleen snickered maliciously. "It is amazing what these neanderthals are willing to do after I bat my eyes and promise them a few measly bucks."

"But you're the prettiest, most desirable girl at school, a boy would have to be like a complete wacko to deny your wishes." Amber clasped her hands dreamily.

Kathleen huffed haughtily before giving her friend a condescending glare "I know that, you don't have to point out the obvious, you idiot!" Amber gulped and shrank back.

Kathleen`s demeanor changed again and she smiled pleasantly. "But speaking of something less obvious, have you wondered why I went the extra mile to make sure that old bore doesn't show up, when I could have just let Tin Teeth make a scene during class and get in trouble with the teacher?"

Amber gulped nervously. "Eh...no...eh...you said you don't like stupid questions or-wait! Is this a rhetorical question?" she asked dumbly. Kathleen rolled her eyes, but decided against chewing her out.

"No, it isn't. And first off, it will be more good PR for me, not that I need it but it helps, to liberate my fellow students from another day of that decrepit bastards monotonous blabbering, and two, I`m feeling generous today."

"Generous?" Amber was confused.

An evil smile crossed Kathleen`s pretty face. "Yes, I am. As you can recall, poor, little Luan has always wanted to be the center of attention. To woo the masses with a grand act, so I`m gonna help her accomplish that, and I made sure to have an audience for her!"

...

Luan found her locker, only to spot a piece of paper on it held in place with some tape. She knew for sure that it definitely wasn't from a secret admirer, but morbid curiosity got to her and she took a look at it. The paper had two pairs of crudely drawn doodles, the sight of them appalled Luan.

The first one showed a fat pig, with her clothes, hair style and buck teeth screaming as a wolf bit into her chunky arm. The second drawing showed the wolf running away from her with a gagging expression accompanied by word bubble which simply said "Yuck!".

Bellow it she read " _Wanna try some Loud Pork? Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin!_ "

Luan was instantly fuming and crushed the paper in her fist, against her will she shot a glance at the still visible scars on her arm and she let out a small tear.

She crumbled the paper into a ball and threw it over her shoulder. Unfortunately, Kathleen was there to catch it and open it up. Upon seeing the drawing both her and Amber started giggling uncontrollably, revealing themselves to Luan.

"Well I have no clue who this anonymous artist is, but I gotta give them credit. They captured you likeness _perfectly_!" Kathleen exclaimed mockingly.

"Yeah, exept they failed to really show your fat thighs!" Amber added before Kathleen shot her a vicious glare, signaling her not to interrupt her.

Not bothering to face them, Luan balled her fists in silent furry. "Oh very funny Kathleen! How old are you? Eight?" Luan shot back, trying not to sound too upset.

"Oh _pleaseee_...I have way more class than that Lu-Lu. I don't waste my talents on childish affairs like this." Kathleen told her smugly.

"The only talent you have is being bitch." Luan said coldly before storming off towards their classroom. Kathleen didn't say anything, instead she smiled gleefully as she saw Luan scratching her arms and neck with greater intensity than before.

" _Don`t let her get under your skin!_ " Luan said to herself as she kept scratching herself until she found her desk. In her bottled up anger she assumed that her anger was causing her skin to feel so ichy. She was very wrong.

She heard some other students laughing at her, one asking her if she took her flea bath, but she blocked them out.

However, much to her dismay Kathleen entered after her and sat at her own desk, which happened to be right in front of Luan`s. She turned to face her, resting her elbow on the chair. Luan grew weary as she saw the glint in her eyes, she was up to something, the comedian knew it.

"What?" Luan asked her harshly as Kathleen kept eyeing her.

"Temper, temper Luan, what's with the hostility? I just want to talk." Kathleen asked in a casual manner, as if she was talking with a friend.

"Will you cut the chitchat and leave me alone?" Luan retorted, scratching her arm in irritation. The only time Kathleen would willingly try to make small talk with her was when she was up to something. Luan grew nervous and started scrutinizing her nemesis and her surroundings.

"Oh don't be like that, why have you gotten so moody and quiet lately anyways..." Kathleen asked sweetly, but Luan could easily see trough her act.

"What ever happened to the cheerful and lively little girl who wanted to be the class clown and try to make everyone laugh?" That question was particularly heavy with sarcasm. Luan narrowed her eyes.

"She grew up. Got wise. I have no reason to smile in this craphole." she answered coldly.

"Ow, you're just being overdramatic. I think this school is just great." Kathleen chorted teasingly.

Luan scowled and looked sideways, not wanting to respond.

Kathleen studied her carefully, mildly irritated. Luan wasn't so easy to fold anymore, she`d give her that much. But that was irrelevant, she was only warming her up for her grand act.

"Hmm...strange, if memory serves you did seem to smile last week, when you planted that exploding blue berry surprise in my locker." her voice grew slightly angry as her temper threatened to errupt, but she calmed herself.

Luan let out a small amused huff. "Guess I did." She could tell Kathleen was still sore over the few times Luan had fought back ever since the school year had started. This gave the comedian a small feeling of triumph.

But she knew her nemesis well, she was a lot of nasty things, including being vindictive, Luan was certain that she was planning her revenge at this very moment, but what was it?

"But don't hate the player, hate the game." Luan stated sharply. Adding the cliché "you`ve started it" bit just felt futile, not like it would make Kathleen rethink her ways.

Luan silently scanned her surroundings, still not seeing any clue that would give away Kathleen`s plot. Luan kept a strong face, whatever it was she could handle it, she's already seen the worst that the alpha bitch had to offer.

"Pfff...you got lucky...eh...twice." Amber mocked her from a nearby seat. "You're only digging your own grave Tin Teeth by making Kathleen upset."

Luan rolled her eyes, not about to let the words of one of Kathleen`s toadies get to her.

"Like that's gonna scare me, I`m not backing off. You`ll have to learn that this is a contact sport and I ain't stopping, no matter how bad the odds look." Luan grew a small smirk after boasting, but it faltered immediately once Kathleen started chuckling maliciously.

"Oh what an amazing comeback..." she stressed sarcastically "...by any chance did your butch little sister come up with that line?"

"Leave her out of this!" Luan snapped, her skin grew more itchy. Kathleen casually looked down to check out her polished nails.

"What?" she said playfully. "It just sounded like something that freckle faced wannabe boy would say. It's not like she has anything else going in her so called mind." Kathleen shot Luan an evil smile as she saw the comedian starting to fume.

"Or is there? Given that she's been getting cozy with a certain thug?" Luan`s eyes shot wide with surprise. Kathleen smiled deviously.

"Oh don't act so surprised. You know I have eyes and ears everywhere."

"That`s none of your beeswax!" Luan gritted her teeth. It was one thing for this stuck up rich cunt to pick on her, but she would not let her do anything to her siblings.

"Oh, but juicy gossip is my business. As the single most beloved and popular student at this institute I`m obliged to stay well informed about my fellow students affairs."

Kathleen`s smirk dropped as she put on a look of faux pitty.

"But I gotta admit, even for me this was a shocker. I mean goddess gratuitous, I thought you were a desperate skank when I sent you that fake love letter from that Benny dweeb..." Luan stiffened with anger after being reminded of it "... but wow, your sister must be scrapping the bottom of the barrel to even associate herself with _him_." Kathleen grimaced comedically to emphasize her point.

"I know, it's so gross, you would have to be like really messed up in the head to want to date a walking roadkill of a brute like Taylor!" Amber eagerly backed her friend up.

Seeing Luan in tranquil fury, Kathleen decided to poke further. "What's the matter? Did I hit a nerve-Uhhhh!" Kathleen`s face beamed with realization.

"Are you jealous of them? Wanted to have Taylor for yourself? He would be right up your reject alley." Kathleen deduced, barely containing her snickering.

"No I am not. If my sister is happy then that's all the satisfaction I need." Luan retorted.

"Oh so you admit that the two are an item?" Kathleen inquired.

Luan gulped, realizing that she had walked into that one. "That's none of your concern!" Luan snapped. Was class ever going to start? Where was that damn teacher already?

Kathleen shook her head disapprovingly. "What a pitty, that poor girl got charmed by that lowlife ruffian, who probably hits her and berates her behind your family`s back." Kathleen mused with fake sympathy.

"But then again I heard she likes to _play it rough_..." she added suggestively. Luan looked at her with complete anger and disgust.

"What`s that supposed to mean!?" her outburst caught everyone`s attention. Seeing this, Kathleen decided to shot.

"Well I `m sure she didn't fall for the tyrants good looks or his charming personality, so she's probably enjoys getting beaten on, like it's some kind of kink..." Kathleen quickly jerked back as Luan lunged at her but was hindered by her own desk. The other students laughed at her feeble attack.

Luan looked up at Kathleen with burning hatred, when she felt her entire body starting to itch like crazy. She couldn't focus on speaking with her overwhelming urge to scratch herself, which she did.

"Oh is something wrong with you Lu-Lu. I`m just _itching_ to find out!" Kathleen laughed. The comedian glared at her viciously.

"Don`t you ever talk about my sister that way or you will regret it!" she growled her threat, but Kathleen chortled in amusement.

"Oh forget about your sister being a desperate, in more ways than one, it seems you have a bigger problem right now." Luan finally realized just how bad the itching she felt was. Kathleen did something to her.

"What did you do!" Luan demanded.

"Oh nothing really. Well, while you were preoccupied getting pelted with dodgeballs, I took the liberty to pour some homemade itching powder onto your tacky clothes."

Luan`s eyes widened in shock. As she looked down she saw a rash growing on her arms, much to her horror. Itching powder didn't cause that? She felt a chill run down her spine. Noticing her rash too Kathleen added another detail.

"Oh and did I forget to mention, I was feeling creative while brewing the stuff up, so I added something else to the mix, a _little_ poison ivy!" Luan gasped as she felt her skin burning. The other students started hollering with laughter as Luan jumped out of her seat and started scratching herself like a madwoman.

Her skin started turning red and blisters were growing everywhere, Luan started shedding tears as the irritation on her skin was begging to feel like her body was on fire.

"Oh you poor thing, you seem to have some nasty skin problems." Kathleen said in mock sympathy.

"Maybe I should give you a card to contact my best cosmetologist, but then again..." Kathleen paused to tap her chin while Luan scratched herself everywhere with more and more intensity while everyone else laughed at her.

"...It`s not like a dirt poor skank like you could afford his services!" Kathleen broke into malicious laughter.

Panicking and being driven crazy by the merciless ichtching, Luan broke away from the group that was laughing at her misfortune and ran towards the nearest bathroom. Kathleen watched her run with glee, this show was far from over.

Luan tried to open the door of the nearest bathroom she could stumble across, but as soon as she started twisting the door handle, she realized it was locked. She started banging on the door and crying for anyone who may have been inside to open it. She was about to find another one she heard the door being unlocked and it suddenly opened.

"Oh I`m sorry, did I keep you waiting?" came the mocking tone of Jenny, another one of Kathleen`s friends. Luan glared at her angrily, but she had no time to think about how she had managed to lock the door and instead bolted towards the sinks.

"Oh by the way, you look a little red around the ears!" Jenny called after her before silently moving out. Luan hastily started splashing water over her face and arms, desperately trying to wash away whatever the hell Kathleen used for her "itching powder" and to try to cool down the burning sensation on her skin. She was too preoccupied to notice the sound of the door closing and getting locked, nore did she notice the beeping coming from beneath the sink, where a stink grenade was taped to bottom of the sink. And its timer just ran out.

In an instance, a cloud of green gass errupted across the room. Gasping in surprise Luan inhaled the gass and started caughing. The odor was awful, it smelled like rotting eggs mixed the odor of skunk, and it assaulted her nasal cavities. The same stuff also got into her eyes and caused her great irritation. Clamping her hands over her eyes and screaming in agony, Luan stumbled towards the door and grabbed the handle, but it was once again locked. Luan pounded on the door and pleaded for anyone to help her, but she got no response.

Daring to open her eyes, the teary-eyed teen saw a light, but her vision was blurry from both her tears and the gas. Nonetheless, she realized it was an open window and she ran towards it. But as she was about to grasp its frame, the floor bellow her turned slippery and she lost control of her footing. The momentum caused her to slam into the wall while her upper body was slung out of the window. Luan tried to rear herself up, but once again slipped, and she fell out of the window. For a split second she thought she was gonna die by cracking her skull and neck on the hard concrete, but she ended up landing on something softer...and smellier.

Rubbing her sore eyes, Luan`s sight was readjusting and another, equally horrid odor overwhelmed her senses. She saw that she was lying in the dumpster, flies were circling all around her and trash got snagged everywhere in her hair and clothes. And her skin started itching again, which only added to her frustration and despair. She started to sob softly, before the smell finally forced her to try and climb out.

But as soon as she got one foot out, she heard the cruel and mocking laughter of all of her classmates, who had gathered around the dumpster. The sound of their mockery distracted her long enough to make her lose her footing and she hit the concrete hard. She yelped in pain and clung to her bruised knee, while everyone kept laughing.

Her body feeling sore from her fall, Luan grabbed on to the nearby fence to force herself up. As she managed to rise up in a kneeling position, she looked up at the crowd and started crying.

Kathleen emerged from the crowd with her hands behind her back, and she nochalamtly approached the weeping comedian. With the tips of her nails Kathleen pulled a banana peel from Luans head, briefly gave it a glance before throwing it away. She turned her gaze back to Luan.

"Well Squirrel Girl, I`ve always said you were trashy, but I didn't think you would take it this LITERALLY!" at that last word Kathleen sharply turned towards the crowd while pointing down at Luan.

The students laughed even harder and then Luan saw Amber standing amongst the crowd, holding a video camera. This whole thing was caught on tape, that was Kathleen`s end game all along.

Kathleen looked down and leered at the disheveled girl. Once again, she adopted a tone of mock sympathy.

"Owwww..." she coed "...don`t look so down in the dump Tin Teeth, once I post my briliant prank online you're gonna become a viral sensation overnight. Isn't that what you`ve always wanted?"

Hearing Kathleen`s condescending words made Luan boil with rage, slowly she looked up at her, sending her a glare of pure hatred. She grasped the fence to pull herself to her feet.

Kathleen smirked evily. "I know it was a bit harsh on your end, but every comedy needs a butt monkey, plus you've made some new friends..." she pointed out, referring to the flies that were encircling the comedian.

Her growing rage pushing her foward, Luan lunged at Kathleen, only to be pulled back by her skirt, while hearing the sound of tearing cloth. Abruptly, the furious teen turned around to see her skirt snagged against the fence, but her action only tore her skirt further until she was free.

The crowd suddenly went quiet, until they errupted with laughter. Luan barely had the chance to register what had happened before the male onlookers started giving her wolf whistles and catcalls.

"Nice panties!"

"Now that's a great show!"

Kathleen snickered uncontrollably. "Bunny printed undies? Seriously?..." she giggled "...How old are you? Eight?" Having Luan flash her underwear to her class wasn`t part of the plan, but she had no problem winging with it.

Luan realized, much to her horror, that she was indecent. Her face turned red from embarrassment and she grabbed her torn skirt to cover herself. But it was all too late.

As she stood there, being the center of attention, with everyone laughing at her and some throwing lewd comments at her, she started crying and crumbling apart. Any desire to punch Kathleen`s lights out was gone, a this whole humiliation was too much for her to handle.

Without another thought, she bolted away, hot tears flying across the air. She didn't think or care where she was going, all she wanted was to get out of here. She ran towards the only sanctuary she could think off : home.

...

School was almost over, all there was left for Lynn was to wait trough history class. Only today they were gonna get their test results, which made the jock feel nervous, as she hadn't exactly studied hard for it beforehand, she was far more concerned enjoying herself practicing soccer and parkour.

Taylor on the other hand noticed their teachers absence and casually left his seat and walked towards the teachers desk. Lynn looked at him dumbfounded.

"Will you get back to your seat, you numbskull!" she called out for Taylor, who had made himself comfortable in their teachers chair.

" _Is he tryin` to get himself in trouble?_ " the jock thought. Taylor nonchalantly rested his head in his arms and spun around in the chair.

"Relax Lynn, Professor Sherman is always late, we could throw a party here _and finish it_ by the time that ol`coot finally remembers to show up-oh what do we have here!"

Seeing him pull out a stack of papers from the teachers desk, Lynn decided enough was enough and she got out of her seat and stormed towards him to grab his arm.

"Come on!" she barked in a strained voice while pulling his arm, Taylor however had his eyes glued to the stack of paper in his hand.

"Yeah, yeah just give a sec, I wanna see how I did on last weeks test..." he said dismissively while checking out his test.

"Huh?I got a C!? Better than I thought. Say, who else wanna hear their results." Taylor asked the rest of the class who remained quiet and withdrawn, it wasn`t clear how much of this was do to their fear of Taylor and their fear of hearing just how bad their score was. He took their silence as "Everyone!"

"Well Francy you lucky bastard, you`ve managed to get away with a D."

Hearing this, Francisco let out a silent breath of relief. Next to him Margo rolled her eyes, knowing he had copied all of her answers.

"And Margo, C+? Oh looks like we have a genius here?" Taylor quipped sarcastically.

She glared at him, but then quietly whispered "yes" while pumping her fist.

"Eh...can can you peek at my test..." Lynn asked, getting a bit curious.

"Sure...just let me scroll trough...lets see...

Harvey D-

Ingrid B+

Emma C

Phill D-

Patrick F+

Amber D-

Dylan C + ..."

Lynn grew impatient while hearing various relieved cheers or miserable groans behind her.

"Hurry up! I think I hear Mr. herman comin`!" she urged him.

"Oh look, that emo chick got a B+..." Taylor laughed.

At her desk Maggie remained as stiff, unresponsive and emotinless as ever.

"Oh here it is..." Taylor`s face scrunched up after seeing his friends results.

"What? Let me see!" Lynn snatched it from him only to gasp upon seeing it.

"F-?! What...how?!", Taylor got up and peeked at her test.

"Well I`m no scholar, but I'm pretty sure the founding of Jamestown didn't go down like in the Disney film. Or that the Congress of Vienna happened in Vienna, Maine."

Right then they heard footsteps, coming closer. Taylor`s head shot up and he took the test from Lynn`s arm and hastily put them back in the drawer.

" _Sorry about this Lynn, but we can talk about it later..."_ he whispered to the distraught jock while pulling her back towards their seats.

But the teacher that came in wasn't Professor Sherman, this teacher only came to inform the class that that Sherman couldn't come do to... _reasons_ , and that class has been dismissed.

The whole classroom erupted with cheers!

...

With their unexpected, but much appreciated early departure from school, Taylor was quick to drag Lynn away from her friends. Now that they had some time to kill before Daddy Loud expected his little girl to be back home, he had the perfect opportunity to spend some more quality time with her.

He did ow her a drink after all.

"So, since I lost the bet, wanna go get a smoothie or catch a movie, my treat." Taylor asked Lynn coolly.

"Sure, as long as it`s on you I`m all for it." Lynn shrugged cheekily.

"Eh, I don't mind it, it's customary for the man to do it anyway." Taylor replied with a smirk.

"Whatever you say , but we got to hurry up, dad expects all of us to be back home in time and give him a call..." she paused as she jumped up on the rails of the main stairs and slid down "...so there's no time to waist." By the time she had finished she was already all the way down.

Taylor looked on in surprise and Lynn crossed her arms smugly. "Care to try it too, or are you chicken?"

"Please, anythin` a girl can do..." he jumped and slid down the rails before making a perfect landing "...I can do better." he boasted.

'Pfff I`d give it a 4.5 out 10 at most." Lynn said snidely

"Everyone`s a critic." Taylor replied dryly.

They kept on walking, until Taylor heard two boys laughing and turned to see them watching something on a phone. He smiled with intrigue.

"Oh man, this stuff is unbelievable!" one of the boys exclaimed.

"I know this has to be the best prank Kath-Hey!" the other boy turned around angrily after having his phone snatched, only to shrink back in fear once he saw who was holding it.

"Got a funny vid, huh? Mind if I check it out?" Taylor asked them rhetorically with a menacing sneer.

The boys hugged each other and nodded fearfully. Lynn saw the whole thing and stormed towards Taylor.

"What are you-give them their phone back!" she barked at him. Taylor`s gaze however was glued to the phone.

"Sure, yeah I will..." he replied absentmindedly "...but first you gotta check out this poor sucker!" He rewinded the video and showed her the phone and Lynn`s curiosity got the better of her.

The shaky video showed someone in the bathroom before the place erupted with green smoke. Soon the person fell out of the window and into the dumpster. Both Lynn and Taylor snickered at the sight, until the person climbed out of the dumpster and Lynn`s eyes went wide.

It was her sister.

" _Well Squirrel Girl, I`ve always said you were trashy, but I didn't think you would take it this LITERALLY_!" Lynn became enraged as she saw Kathleen entering the frame. She snatched the phone from Taylor and watched the rest of the video intensely.

It ended with Luan running away and the view turning back to Kathleen who snarked at the crowd " _Sensitive much? Some people just can't take a joke!_ "

That was the breaking point for Lynn. She slammed the phone against the floor and chrushed under the sole of her sneaker.

"My phone!" the boy gasped before Lynn grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him face to face. He almost wet his pants upon meeting her furious face.

"Where is she!" she growled trough gritted teeth.

"Eh..w..who..?" the boy stuttered in terror.

"Kathleen! Where is she!"

"I don't know! I...I was just there and filmed it by accident..." once he said that Lynn let him go and he collapsed to the ground. With that Lynn stormed away from them.

Taylor watched her before looking down to see the other boy weeping on his knees and cradling his crushed phone in his hands. Taylor chuckled.

"You know! You could have just deleted it!" he shouted after Lynn but she payed him no attention. Taylor`s smirks dropped.

"Hey wait! Where are ya goin`?" he chased after her.

...

Within the girls bathroom (not the one that was smelling like a gas station toilet) Kathleen and her friends were doing their hair and makeup.

"Well I would say that this was a very productive morning." the alpha bitch started while admiring herself in the mirror.

"Oh yes very productive!" Amber eagerly agreed while plucking her eyebrow.

"Your plan was like totally brilliant..." Jenny added while putting her lipstick on"...I doubt that loser will dare to show her face here ever again. She`ll probably try homeschooling like some country bumpkin redneck!"

Kathleen chortled while styling her hair.

"Oh I can certainly imagine her in a straw hat and overalls, they would go well with her overbite!" They all snickered unanimously. After they finished, Kathleen smiled at her reflection.

"Ah...but it would be a shame if she left. School time would a lot less fun...for me."

At that moment Lynn came in, kicking the door open. It startled the girls, Jenny smeared the lipstick across her face while Amber screeched in paint after almost pulling half her eyebrow off. A surprised Kathleen turned towards the jock and smiled haughtily.

"Oh it's you? Luan`s little sis, right?" Kathleen started in a disinterested tone before turning back to admiring herself in the mirror. "Eh what was your name again? I didn't care to remember."

"I know what you have done!" Lynn growled accusingly, barely containing herself from ripping the cunt in front of her apart.

"Really? Hah, and I thought you athletes were slow on the uptake..." Kathleen replied snidely before finally facing Lynn "...and don't you worry your not-so-pretty head off, all of you Louds will be able to see the clear cut version on YouTube in less than 24 hours."

Lynn didn't speak, she acted. In a fit of blind fury she grabbed Kathleen by her shirt and pinned her against the wall. Amber and Jenny screamed in fear.

"Oh so you think hurting my sister is funny, do ya!?" Lynn growled at the frightened Kathleen.

"Well let's see how much you'll be laughin` after I rearrange your face!"

Kathleen`s startled expression suddenly dropped, her eyes narrowed and she smiled deviously. "Oh I don't think that would be a good idea. I know thinking isn't your strong suit, but at least try to. If you harm me, you'll get in a _whole lot of trouble_."

"Not after I show everyone what you've done to Luan!" Lynn retorted threateningly. Kathleen`s face cracked up and she chuckled.

"You think that will accomplish anything? No one gives a crap about Tin Teeth, they'll all side with me since I have everyone wrapped around my finger. And if you hurt me it will be a piece of cake to make you out to be the bad guy. You really want to get yourself suspended for nothing?" Kathleen wasn't particularly worried for her safety, she was confident she would appeal to the jocks common sense.

Unfortunately Lynn didn't follow her common sense when she was pissed. Kathleen yelped when Lynn raised her fist, but before it could connect with the alpha bitches face, Taylor grabbed her by the arm.

"What-LET ME GO!" Lynn roared as Taylor pulled her away from Kathleen. Jenny and Amber screeched in horror.

"Oh my gosh, what are you doing here! You can`t go into the the girls bathroom." Amber yelled.

Taylor shot them a snide glare while restraining Lynn. "It`s a free country dollface. And as for your first question. I heard you babes would try out new outfits here." The girls looked appalled.

He then gave them a creepy smirk. "Guess I was wrong. BUT, maybe I could _persuade_ you lovely ladies to try it out now."

Amber and Jenny screeched in fear and disgust and ran away. Recovering from her shock Kathleen glared venomously at the boy.

"What the hell are you doing here, you creeper? Get out of my sight!" she snapped at him furiously. Taylor rolled his eyes.

"A simple "thank you" for savin` ya from a month in a body cast would have been nice, Kathy." he snarked at her.

"No, what would be nice would be you running into the woods again and try to wrangle a grizzly bear!" Kathleen snarled ferociously. Taylor rolled his eyes again, why did he even bother?

"Will you let me go! That bitch is dead meat!" Lynn roared while struggling in his grasp.

"Easy there tiger. This is not the place to do it. You don't want to get suspended on a Friday." he told her in a placatory tone.

Feeling a bit more safe, Kathleen allowed herself to relax and chuckle.

"I`d listen to your boyfriend if I were you, Loud. If you get into trouble for fighting it might cut into your make out schedule, as disgusting as that image would be." she mocked the jock who in turn and tried to lunge at her.

"Why Kathy, do I detect a hint of jealousy?" Taylor smirked at her.

"Eww! In your dreams you scar-faced freak!" Kathleen gagged in great repulsive.

Taylor smiled more subtly. "Your`re right, I`m sure you enjoyed the view of Luan rippin` her skirt a lot more."

He smiled with satisfaction as he saw Kathleen boiling.

"But enough chitchat, you better leave. I`m not sure how long I can hold Lynn." Taylor gave her a soft warning as he held into the raging jock.

Kathleen was ready to bombard him with a million insults about his appearance, but she then looked at the furious Lynn and realized, as much as it pained her to admit it, Taylor was right. She was pressing her luck and couldn`t risk getting her beautiful face damaged by that freckle faced psycho.

"Pfff, whatever, I`m not hanging around you freaks for another second." she said haughtily as she walked past them. As she went off, Lynn was left fuming. In her anger she failed to notice the discrete, but visibly contemptuous glare that Taylor was sending in Kathleen`s direction. It quickly went away and he turned towards Lynn.

After Kathleen was gone, Taylor let Lynn go. She turned around to face him with a look of pure anger.

"What was that about?! On who's side are you on!?" she snapped at him, her voice filled with anger and hurt.

"On your side. Which is why I had to stop ya from gettin` yourself suspended." Taylor explained to her, while keeping his composure.

"No, I wouldn't have. I`d beat her up so bad that no body could even recognize her as one the students!"

"Right, and you did just hear what you have said, right?" Taylor drawled dryly. He knew getting a pissed off Lynn to listen to reason was nearly impossible, but he had to do it anyway.

...

Some time later, they were sitting at a bench outside of the school, where Lynn had finally managed to cool down.

"Ryan...I`m sorry for snappin` at you. T..Thanks for stopping me before I did somethin` stupid." she admitted humbly.

"That`s alright, what are friends for?" he replied casually. Lynn remained quiet, still feeling raged up on the inside.

"And I don't blame ya for wantin` to pummel her into a bloody pulp. Kathleen`s one nasty cunt, as cold as she's hot." Taylor pointed out.

Lynn felt strangely irked after hearing him say that.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" she asked in an annoyed tone, trying not to sound like it struck a nerve with her. Taylor shrugged.

"Well I can't deny that she's quite a looker..." he answered casually. His response only made Lynn feel more agitated and wishing to introduce that alpha bitch to a world of hurt. Her frustration didn't go unnoticed by Taylor.

"Lynn, don't let her get you, it's exactly what rich bitches like her feed on." he told her comfortingly.

"I know, it's just that I _really_ want to twist her scrawny, over powdered neck." she replied with a vicious edge to her tone.

Sighing, Taylor pulled out a seven dollar bill and gave it to Lynn, much to her surprise.

"I know that you must feel really frustrated, so why don't you find Funny Girl and take her for a smoothie or something, to help you both blow off some steam. But... but just don't tell her that I gave it to you."

"Wh...eh thanks Ryan, but...but didn't you want to hang out with me?"

"Nah, I just remembered that I`m busy for today anyway, gotta finish some chores and a lot of homework before tomorrow. Can't avoid it, I`m on thin ice with my folks as it is." Taylor explained.

"Homework?" Lynn raised an eyebrow, finding it hard to believe. Taylor stopped and smirked at her.

"Sure, don't wanna fall back on my studies the way you do." Lynn clenched her fists at his remark, but kept her composer.

"Besides, I`m sure Luan needs someone to talk to right now, share her feelings with and...ya know,other...girl stuff."

Lynn smiled at him. "You`re right. Thanks for understandin`." And much to the boys surprise she gave him a hug, which made him feel light-headed and grin like an idiot all over again.

"Eh sure...no problem." he replied somewhat awkwardly. They then went their separate ways.

"See ya tomorrow." They waved each other goodbye

"I`m lookin` foward to it, see ya." the boy shouted, but he wasn't planning on doing chores or homework.

He hated having to lie to Lynn, but he had other plans for this afternoon and he preferred to do it discretely.

 **And finally, I got to utilize Kathleen again and give you a more clear cut picture of just how mean she is and the kind of crap Luan has to go trough. I think both this and the last chapter did a good job at capturing the ugly and cruel mob mentality kids tend to have when one of them gets picked on, no room for empathy or altruism.**

 **The Louds certainly aren't in for a happy reunion once they all come back home...**


	4. Some Sisterly Comforting

**Next chapter is up, now we see the family comforting each after a long, painful day. Though not all of the siblings might see eye to eye at the worst of moments. Plus an old OC enemy of theirs finally shows up again...**

Lynn came back home, hoping her sister would be there. Given the humiliating and frankly life endangering experience she had just went trough, Lynn was worried that the comedian, in her emotionally frail state, might have ran off to somewhere secluded, far away (and possibly dangerous), and that she wouldn't come back.

Lynn entered the apartment and shot a quick, disdainful look at the little pit hole that her family was calling home now. It appeared to be completely empty, until Lynn noticed that the bathroom door was left opened. Lynn darted towards it and saw moisture all over the walls and the shower base, and next to it, lying scrunched up on the floor, were Luan`s white shirt and her ripped yellow skirt, both dirty and reeking like they had just been dipped in a dumpster. Lynn felt a wave of relief.

" _Well there's only one place she could be now_." she deduced the obvious. If there was one upside to living in a tiny apartment like theirs, it was that no one could find a place to hide.

The jock walked towards her shared bedroom and grabbed the door knob, worrying that it would be locked, but luckily it wasn't. Lynn cautiously peeked inside and saw her sister curled up on her bottom bunk. Luan stayed there motionless, seemingly unaware that someone had opened the door. As Lynn walked towards her she saw that Luan was garbed in her orange bathrobe and had a towel wrapped around her head. She was barefoot and Lynn noticed some rash on her sisters feet, and on her hands as well, Luan`s cheeks and neck were also visibly covered with it.

Luan remained quiet and unresponsive, so Lynn sat down next to her, feeling a bit nervous, as she had no idea what to say or do right now. Consoulting people wasn't exactly her strong suit.

" _You `re back early_..." Luan suddenly muttered in a meek tone, not moving an inch from her resting position.

"Yeah, somethin` came about and I got to leave early..."...Lynn started awkwardly "...eh lucky me, right?" she forced a small chuckle hoping it would lighten the mood a bit, only to be met with dead silence. Lynn sighed and placed a comforting hand on her sisters shoulder.

"Luan..." she said as softly as her rough voice could allow "...I...know about what happened at school today. And...I`m sorry sis. That was terrible...what those scumbags did to ya, it was really heinous."

Lynn sighed. "I know how you feel. Being thrown in a dumpster and having jackasses toss crude comments at you, been there." she humbly recollected. She understood the kind of demeaning humiliation her sister had just gone trough quite well. Ironically, one the "jackasses" she was referring to was currently trying to atone for mistreating her and be her friend, something the jock wasn`t expecting to see from the other students any time soon.

Also no one saw her getting trashed, Luan on the other has had an audience watching and her humiliation was caught on tape.

"If you want to talk about it, I`m here for you." she reassured her older sister.

Luan finally looked up to meet her sisters compassionate gaze, at which point Lynn noticed her sisters bloodshot eyes. No mystery how they got that way.

Lynn stretched her arms out and the weeping Luan took the invitation to embrace her. Resting her head against the jocks shoulder, Luan couldn't stop herself from sobbing again and held her sister in a tight hug. She needed to let it all out. She quickly spilled out all the bottled up thoughts of hurt and anger and Lynn patiently listened to her.

"Feel better now?" she asked softly. Luan didn't answer, as she had a diffrent question boggling her mind.

"Lynn...you said you were dismissed early? You didn't..."

"Nah, don't worry about it..." Lynn calmly interjected.

"But believe me, I was _this_ close to stomping that conniving wench into burger meat, but Ryan stopped me at the last second and talked some sense into me." she elaborated.

Luan was quickly relived. As much as she liked the thought of Kathleen getting brutally maimed, she would never have wanted it at the expense of her sister getting suspended, or worse.

"I came back to see if you were alright..." Lynn gently admitted, still hugging her sister.

Luan didn't answer, she just sniffed dejectedly. No, she wasn't alright, she had just been humiliated, nearly injured, she skipped classes and is soon to become a viral laughing stock on the internet. She couldn't take this anymore, she just wanted to lock herself up at home and never have to face the cruel and merciless world that lay beyond it.

Lynn, meanwhile, took her silence as a sign that she didn't want to talk anymore. "Lu, if you don't want to talk anymore, it's okay..."

"Why does everyone hate me..." Luan blurted out in a croaking voice.

"W-What?" Lynn blinked in confusion.

"Why does everyone want to see me in pain? Why am I so hateable? What have I done wrong to deserve this?" Luan sobbed frantically. Lynn finally caught on about what her sister was rambling about.

"Don`t be ridiculous! I love you. We all love you..."

"You`re my family, you're obliged to. Why does everyone else hate me..."

Lynn paused for a moment to think, before scowling with contempt.

"Why? It's because that Kathleen is a pathetic, cowardly, miserable bully with no life and has nothing better to do than to pick on someone who she knows can't defend herself, and everyone else who sides with her is nothin` but a braindead sheep following the "pretty, popular" girl around. Luan, you should be proud of yourself, you`re a much better and smarter person than any of that worthless filth that infests our school."

Luan looked down bleakly from her sisters shoulder. "I don't feel very proud right now..." she mumbled "...I skipped school today and dad`s gonna be furious."

Lynn petted her on the back. "Don't worry. After we tell him what happened, he`ll understand, he may be strict, but he wouldn't punish you after the ordeal you just went trough. As for the school staff...we`ll just say you had an allergic reaction and had to leave, it's not like its that far from the truth anyway."

"I guess..." Luan mumbled. Smiling a bit, Lynn finally released her from her embrace.

"So? Feel any better now?" Lynn asked her again.

"A bit, I guess..." Luan answered feebly. Talking with one of her siblings honestly did help her, and now that she looked back it, she had faced plenty of pain and mysery at the hands of her peers before, why would this be any worse? The inevitable viral video was coming, but it's not like she had any sort of reputation to lose and she had more important things for this weekend to do, more important than wallowing in self-pitty, like earn some extra cash which her family certainly needed at every opportunity.

"Good, so how about we go get a drink, I...eh have some spare money." Lynn offered.

"No thanks. I don't feel like going out." Luan declined. "Besides I have to treat my rash."

Luan reared back up and removed the towel from her head, and grabbed a hairdryer. But before she couuld turn it on she saw her sister looking at her with a devious glint in her eyes.

"Okay, so why don't we talk about some more important matters." Lynn started in a sharp tone.

"Huh?" a puzzled Luan responded.

"I`m talkin` about getting payback on Kathleen. If she thinks she can get away messin` with the Loud sisters she's sorely mistaken! So what's the plan?"

"A plan?" Luan asked.

"Yes, we`ll punk her even harder. Just you and me, we`ll humiliate her so badly that she`ll never be able to show herself in a public ever again. So what's your plan? Conductin` elaborate pranks is your speciality." Lynn eagerly clarified.

Luan sat there in silence, unsure about what to say, until she suddenly hung her head down and shook it weakly.

"I won't be planning any payback." she said sullenly.

"What?" Lynn was caught by surprise.

Luan looked her in eye with a serious glare. "I`m not gonna bother with it, it would be pointless and just add even more fuel to this forest fire of a feud. Besides, I`ll be busy getting dad to let me be homeschooled."

"Homeschooled?" Lynn was shocked. "Luan, you can't be serious? That's only done by, like, creepy, friendless, reclusive weirdos?"

Luan gave her a small irritated glare.

"Well aren't I one of them already?" Luan retorted with a hint of dry sarcasm. Lynn blinked in confusion. She then flailed her arms up defensively.

"What-No-I mean...I`m sorry, that came out wrong!" Luan, however, didn't seem angered by it. If anything she seemed to begrudgingly accept the accusation.

"No, you hit the nail on the head." she replied plainly. Lynn grew agitated.

"No I-ugghhh, stop twistin` it! I didn't mean any of that. There's nothin` wrong with you sis, you're just a bit...eccentric. And you can't just run away from your problems."

Luan kept the same exasperated expression.

"Facing them won't do me any good either. I`m afraid not everyone is a popular athlete with lots of friends who can tame the wildest of bullies with a combination of her feminine charm and tomboyish roughness." Lynn was confused before she blushed involuntarily.

"What does that-Wait, we`re not goin1 back on that crap again!" Lynn snapped. Luan felt a small tinge of amusement and smiled weekly.

"Oh don't worry Lynn, I haven't forgotten about helping you prepare for your date tomorrow. I`ve texted the others about it hours ago." Lynn`s eyes widened in disbelief and started twitching in agitation. She barely contained herself from exploding.

" _Stay calm Lynn, relax, don't lose it. You can kill her for it latter_." she told herself.

"Don`t you have more important things to think about? Like homeschooling being a bad idea!" Lynn asked sharply, intent on changing the subject. Luan`s smile dropped and she turned serious again. This wasn't the moment to tease her sister.

"Bad idea? Try looking at it from my 's the better option? Being stuck for five days every week with people who hate you and torment you just so you won't end up being some uneducated dropout, or you can do your studies at home with the same effect, but minus all the abuse? I won't gain anything by staying there?"

Lynn stayed quiet, where could she argue with that. "But what about Kathleen? You can't just let her win this battle and get away with it?"

Luan glared at her with a hint of irritation. "I never _wanted_ to be in this "battle" in the first place. Kathleen forced my hand, I never wanted this and I also have nothing to gain by going on with this pointless and petty feuding. I`m sick and tired of it all! If I can pull the plug on it somehow I`ll gladly take the chance."

"But Luan? You...you can't just stay alone here, locked up..."

"I won't be alone, Lucy will keep me company, we talked about it together." Luan stated in a normal tone.

Lynn`s eyes widened."What? You dragged Lucy into this ridiculous idea too?" she asked in disbelief. Luan scowled at her again.

"I didn't talk her into it, she was the one who suggested we take cues from Lola, and given all the crap she gets at school, I think this would be the best for her. And I don't wanna sound entitled or anything but I do believe that I'm better qualified for judging her situation than any of you, and I don't want her to go trough the same hell like I did."

"But, Luan...?"

"I made up my mind Lynn." the older sister stated firmly and got off the bed.

Luan then walked over to a small table which had two jars of rash cream on it. One had been emptied already and so Luan took the second one.

"Now unless you wanna talk about you're upcoming date, this conversation is over."

"For the last time! It's not a freakin` date!" Lynn jumped up and yelled angrily.

" _Sure_ , just keep telling yourself that." Luan retorted in a hushed, slightly amused tone.

But then she looked at her sister with a tired expression.

"Now, if you don't mind, I have to ask you to leave. I have to treat this rash if I`m going to have any hope to be well enough by tomorrow to attend my next gig, and I have rashes literally everywhere." she explained in an exasperated tone.

Hearing that, Lynn calmed down.

"Kay, okay, I get the memo." Lynn replied understandably and uncomfortably, while trying to block out the horrifying mental images that were likely lying under Luan`s robe, and left their bedroom.

Once she closed the door, she heard it getting locked and sighed sadly.

...

One they had reached the bus stop, Lucy and Lana had to take a short walk back to their apartment. For the first time, Lucy had to be the one escorting her younger sibling instead of Lincoln, and considering they had to go trough the same alley where she had seen her brother getting grabbed, dragged away and threatened by Taylor, Lucy definitely wasn't looking forward to be being here out in the opened.

"Come on..." she told Lana somewhat hastily, while holding her head as they descended down the bus stairs.

The bus soon drove off, and Lucy was eager to reach home as fast as possible. Holding hands, she led her sister home, not feeling like chatting about anything.

"Are you okay?" the little blonde asked with concern, noticing how the goth seemed to be at unease.

"Fine...just...some bad memories with this street." Lucy answered, sounding somewhat distant.

All of a sudden Lucy jolted when they both heard something barking. They looked up to see a dog barking from a second story balcony. Seeing her sister growing nervous, Lana urged Lucy to look away and move on.

"It okay Lucy, it's just a dog, he won't hurt you. They bark a lot, but most don't have much of a bite." Lana reassured her sister who was growing more nervous and anxious. Lucy only nodded.

Lana may have been young and naive, but even she understood why her sister was acting this way. After the camping incident, even the animal loving Lana felt scared about coming close to dogs, at least the large and mean looking ones. But Lucy seemed to suffer from this traumatic experience more than the rest of them. Lana wondered if there was any way to help Lucy move on from her canine-related phobia, their father had already mentioned, sadly and several times over, that they couldn't afford a child _psychologist_ , what ever those were. But Lana believed there was surely some other means to help her.

Lucy noticed how her sister seemed to be pondering about something, when she felt a tap on the shoulder, causing her to jolt and yelp. Lana turned around and saw Lucy with her back turned, frantically surveying her surroundings.

"Lana, someone...something touched me." Lucy exclaimed nervously, but Lana got a good view of who gave her sister a tap, he was still clinging onto her shoulder.

"Calm down silly, it's just Fang." the tomboy laughed merrily. Lucy looked at her shoulder and saw the small bat climbing ontop of it, looking at her curiously with his big, black eyes. Lucy sighed in relief.

"Fang. You gave me quite a scare." she told her pet in a more normal tone. His arrival actually lifted her spirit quite a bit and she finally smiled as she let him climb down her arm and perch on her hand.

Lana moved closer and started scratching him against the ear, a gesture he seemed to enjoy given how he was tilting his head towards her.

"What are you doin` in broad day light buddy?" Lana asked cheerfully. "I thought you were noc...eh nocht...eru...eh noc..." the tomboy felt her tongue twisting as she couldn't pronounce the last word. Lucy found it rather funny.

"It`s _nocturnal_. It means, well, an animal that is awake at night." the goth clarified helpfully.

"Of course, I knew that." Lana retorted, trying to save face. She did know what the blasted word meant, she just had trouble saying it. Lucy looked back at her bat curiously.

"That is a good question Lana. Why is he..."

They got their answer once they heard the shrill cry of a bird of prey. The girls looked up to see a falcon soaring in a circle high above them. Now it made sense.

Lana gasped."You poor thing. Did that mean bird try to eat?" she asked the little mammal sympathetically.

"Don't worry, you'll be safe with us." Lucy placed the bat on her shoulder again. Her mood soured once again by this cruel reminder that her friend could be killed by a predator any day by living semi-wild.

With that the sisters moved onwards. Unbeknownst to them, someone was watching them from a corner. He was wearing a disheveled, olive-green plaid jacket with a hood which he was wearing over his head, along with some ripped jeans and dirty, worn out sneakers. With his hands tucked in his pockets, the person started cautiously following them.

The girls reached an intersection, the last thing between them and home. Lucy was impatiently waiting for the traffic light to change, but Lana`s attention shifted towards a store to her left. Seeing it sparked an idea in her head.

"Hey, could we do a small detour?" the tomboy suddenly asked. Lucy looked at her oddly.

"What det...hey!" Lana didn't wait for an answer and bolted away. Frustrated and confused, the goth muttered to herself and followed.

Once she caught up, Lucy found Lana in front of a pet store, pressing her face against the window glass and gushing at the little pups and kittens that were on display.

"Lana, what's this all about?" Lucy asked sternly. "If you're trying to buy a new..."

"I`m not." Lana answered apologetically, feeling bad for just running off. "I know we can't have pets. But I wanted you to come here, so we can help you."

"Help me? How? With what?" Lucy was beyond bewildered.

"I`ll show you." Lana smiled and dragged Lucy by the arm into the store. The goth decided to just roll with it and told Fang to stay quiet.

Outside their follower was shaking his fists furiously, before slowly advancing towards the store.

...

Meanwhile, in his bedroom, Taylor was rummaging trough his closet, throwing out various clothes into his already messy room. Marceline was resting on his bed, lazily observing her owner.

"Ah there you are! I haven't worn you in a while." Taylor finally found the outfit he was searching for and quickly stuffed it into his backpack, which he had already filled with a few handy gadgets he would need for his mission.

"That would be all." he dusted his hands as he finished packing. Marceline randomly meowed and Taylor looked at the black cat.

"Why am I doin` this in a needlessly complicated way when I could have just grabbed Kathleen`s camera and pushed her into the school fountain, and then watched her bitch and moan about her ruined hair and make up?" he asked her intuitively and then chortled.

"If I did that people might get the wrong impression that I care about Funny Girl, _which I don't_. But that pampered cunt ain't gettin` away with insulting Lynn."

His eyes then narrowed and he smirked darkly. "Besides, _this way is a lot more fun_."

He looked at his wall clock, it was only 2 p.m. He would have to wait until dusk if he wanted to pull this off successfully. Not an issue, as he knew that Kathleen wouldn't post her video until prime viewing hours when all of those idiots would be gawking at their computer.

"Well, looks like I`ll have the time to sort out some other inconveniences." he said in a jaunty tone while petting his cat on the head, which made her purr in return. He quickly got down the stairs and entered the kitchen, where he found his younger brother doing his homework at the kitchen table. Taylor smirked with amusement, the whimp was too distracted to notice Taylor seating himself in front of him.

Taylor took advantage of the situation and slammed his hand on the table several times over, startling his brother.

"Ah Roy, hardworkin` as usual I see." Taylor started in a friendly tone.

" _Oh great, he`s asking for a favor_." the 10 year old thought dejectedly. That was usually the only reason his brother would ever talk to him.

"Ryan?" he asked timidly "You..need something?"

Taylor smiled, he always appreciated it when people knew when to get right to the point.

"As a matter of fact I do, I need you to be anywhere but home tomorrow. You see, a friend of mine will be comin` over and I would _really_ appreciate it if we had this place to ourselves on that day." he continued in his faux-friendly tone. Of course Roy knew that when his brother was "asking a favor" he was simply ordering him to do something.

"What? But...where am I supposed to go?" Roy asked him meekly, after effectively having been told to evacuate his own house by morning.

Taylor shrugged indifferently. "Doesn't matter. The mall, Burping Burgers, Dairy Land, you can visit some loser friend of yours and blabber about Ace Savvy, I don't care. I just need you not to be here." he stated crisply.

Roy glanced down sadly, he knew there was no point in arguing, might as well just roll with it. But some morbid curiosity got the better of him. "Okay fine, but...but why do I need to go? I promise I won't bother you?"

Taylor rolled his eyes, he hated stupid questions. He responded irritably. "Why? Because..."

"Because he and his new friend are probably up to something legally questionable or life endangering, and he doesn't want eyewitnesses." a dour and monotonous female voice interjected.

"Renee..." Taylor grumbled and turned sharply to see his teen sister walking in to open the fridge and pull out some orange juice. She didn't bother facing her brothers.

"That's not your concern bookworm." the boy shot back smugly. He could have said that he wasn't planning anything shifty, which would have been the truth this time, but he never would resist the chance to annoy his sister.

"It isn't..." the ebony-haired girl replied in the same apathetic tone while pouring the juice into a glass "...but I`m just wondering if your new pal is also into assaulting toddlers with baseball bats?"

Taylor grew irked, but tried to keep his confident facade. "You're never gonna let me hear the end of that, are ya?" he snarked while pinching his temple." So I misjudged that psycho Lyle, sue me! For your information, Lynn is nothin` like that. _She_ prefers indulgin` in various sports over pummelin` kids."

Taylor`s enunciated use of female pronouns didn't trigger any change in Renee`s indifferent demeanor, she simply drank her juice casually and wiped her mouth clean.

"I don`t want to bet on it, I wouldn't put much faith in the judgment of someone who thought it was a bright idea to wander off into the wilderness and get mauled by wolves." With that she left her brothers.

Grumbling and cursing underneath his breath, Taylor was ready to follow her, but not before facing Roy one last time. "I expect you to take a hike by the time I come back home tomorrow." he reminded him in a sharp tone and Roy simply nodded.

Taylor ran up the stairs and caught up with his sister as she returned to her room. He stopped at the doorway and crossed his arms. "Alright..." he asked impatiently"...what`s it gonna take to get _you_ to leave? Fifteen bucks? Twenty bucks? Me doin` the dishes for two weeks?"

"Forget it dweeb." she retorded plainly while organizing her book shelf. "My book club is coming here tomorrow and I have to finish my novel."

Taylor snickered mockingly. " That again? Given how much time you spend starrin` at paper you're gonna need some spectacles pretty soon."

"Better to suffer mild damage to your vision than to get yourself mutilated by wild animals." Renee replied apathetically. Taylor quietly growled.

"But if it`s any consultation, I have no interest in meeting your friend or learning about your weekend exploits, so I believe that our plans for tomorrow are fairly mutually exclusive." the 14 year old pointed out, hoping it would get her brother to leave.

Taylor rolled his eyes, he knew this was the best he would get from her. "Fine, whatever." he said dismissively and left his sister alone.

At this point he decided it would best to actually just do all of his homework while locked up in his room. It was a much better way to kill time, instead of listening to his sisters insults. Before he could finally have some real fun...

...

The store owner who had greeted them had been friendly enough, or more precisely just towards Lana, as she had occasionally come here and helped them out taking care of the animals before. Obviously the employees had taken a shine to her, but Lucy only got a few odd glares.

She could tell what they were thinking, but she guessed that adults had enough decency to at least stay polite and not assault her with rude questions like " _What the hell is wrong with your skin? You look creepy? Why the hell is that blood-sucking flying rat on your shoulder?!"_

"Lana, why are we here?" an exasperated Lucy moaned, just wanting to be home already.

"I just wanted to help you with your fear of dogs." Lana answered while looking trough a litter of fuzzy, excitable puppies.

"How is this supposed to help me?" the goth questioned with bemusement.

"By facing your fears, one step at a time..." Lana explained and finally picked up the most "wolfish" one of the bunch, a little German Shepard pup. Lucy`s eyes widened with unease as Lana cradled the pup in her arms and brought him closer to the goth.

Fang suddenly tensed up and hissed at the pup, startling it.

"Eh..I don't think Fang likes the idea." Lucy observed nervously.

"No problem, I`ll take him." Lana said helpfully and placed the pup down and took the bat on her hand. She then gently moved the pup with one hand towards her sister.

"Come on Lucy, he just wants a hug, he can't bite with those tiny chompers." Lana encouraged her. Lucy made eye contact with the pup, it looked at her curiously and it appeared very innocent and cuddly, just like the twins and Lisa were when Lucy first met them. Feeling braver, Lucy lifted the pup in her arms, and it started making rather adorable yelps and squeaks.

Lucy actually found it very endearing and heartwarming, she didn't see a huge, snarling, blood-hungry beast with sharp fangs and claws, but just a little dog that any young girl would have found adorable.

"I...guess...he`s kind of cute." Lucy admitted with an awkward smile as she stroked the pups soft fur.

"See, I told you it would help." Lana beamed joyfully. "Now, how about we find a bigger dog?" she suggested, a bit too quickly for Lucy`s liking.

"I..." Lucy gulped. Thankfully, their conversation got interrupted.

"Hey Lana!" The sisters saw a young boy around Lana`s age calling her name while holding a glass cage filled with several geckos. He was accompanied by his parents.

"Who`s that?" Lucy asked Lana, who was waving at the boy.

"Oh that's just Billy, he`s a friend of mine from school." the tomboy explained before turning to the goth. "I think he needs my help for somethin`, is it okay if I see him?"

"Yeah sure...I guess." Lucy answered with uncertainty and let Lana, who took Fang with her, go. Lucy stayed behind, she hated mingling with other kids as it brought her nothing but trouble.

She glanced down at the pup she was petting and smiled weekly as he gave her a lick on the cheek. "You're not scary, you're really nice... " she couldn`t help but to lightly giggle.

But suddenly, by accident, she noticed something in her peripheral vision and her gaze drifted towards the store window.

Someone wearing a hoodie walked by it and shot a quick aside glance into the store. His face was partly obscured, but Lucy could have sworn that she saw him scowling. But as soon as she saw him, he passed by and was gone.

Lucy stared at the window suspiciously until she heard Lana`s voice. "Hey Lucy!"

Turning around, Lucy faced her sister who looked at tad awkward. "Em...Lucy, is okay if I go with Billy and his folks. He wants to set up the home for his new geckos and he asked me to help them, since, ya know, no one knows how to make reptiles and frogs feel more at home than me.

"What? But we have to be home to help Lincoln when dad returns." Lucy was surprised and placed the pup back in its box.

"I know that, but dad won't come back until like seven and there's no point in us just waitin` for him. Plus, I can't just say no when a friend needs my help." Lana pointed out.

"Sigh. Alright, but try not to stay there for too long, remember Lincoln needs us." Lucy told her poignantly.

"I won't and don't worry, Billy`s mom will give me a ride back home." Lana said reassuringly while handing Fang over to Lucy.

"Alright, see you back home." Lucy bid her farewells and left the store alone with Fang perched on her shoulder. But the moment she turned right she stopped in her tracks as she nearly bumped into the hooded figure, who was leaning against the wall. He rose up and glared down at her.

Lucy saw that he had a unibrow and several zits on his face. Her heart started pounding with fear as he glared ominously at her, Fang was apparently also startled as he hid into her ebony hair.

The tension was broken when the boy started snickering and sneered at the 7 year old, reveling a gap in his teeth. "Looks like someone hasn't been gettin` enough sun light, or did that puny vampire rat suck all the blood out of ya?" he asked her in a mocking tone.

Lucy shrank back fearfully and after a short staring contest the boy realized he wouldn't get any funny reaction out of the brat. He moaned irritably, while rolling his eyes and walked passed her. "Out of my way runt!" he exclaimed rudely, almost pushing down Lucy as she barely dodged him.

Looking at him leaving, Lucy felt angry and clenched her fists, but also felt embarrassed with herself for being so paranoid. She thought this guy wanted to hurt her, but he was just another unpleasant jerk. Straightening herself up, Lucy walked back home with Fang.

The boy, however, shot her one glance while her back was turned and smirked gleefully. " _Good, she's out of the way, now I can snatch that little blond-haired rat._ "

He waited near the pet store for Lana to come out alone, holding on to a piece of cloth which was tucked in his pocket. But, much to his charging, he saw her leaving with another brat and two adults, carrying a glass cage filled with salamanders...or something. They quickly entered their car and drove off, leaving the fuming boy to grit his teeth and stomp the ground in frustration.

He looked back towards where the goth had went off to and saw her walking up the stairs and entering the front door of an old building, which made him curse inwardly.

So close. He was so close!

" _You haven't seen the last of Lyle!_ " he swore bitterly before running off to his house.

The whole thing was bust, he had a golden opportunity to catch the Loud brat, and he couldn't even get her dead-looking creepy sister. Lyle angrily stormed towards his home, but upon arriving he saw an alarming sight that made him backtrack and hide behind a building.

Cautiously peeking his head, he saw a police car parked in front of his house. Two officers were at his front porch talking to his mother. He couldn't make out what they were saying, but he knew why they were there.

" _Dammit! For fucking hell-Dammit! How did they figure it out where I have been hidding? I was always careful! Ughh...fuck it, I need somewhere else to hide!_ " And he knew exactly where! But he knew he couldn't reach that place in broad daylight. He had to take a temporary refuge somewhere else, and he knew just where. His old hangout at the abandoned warehouse.

Thinking on his feet, he wasted no time heading for the warehouse. Luckily he saw no other signs of the police.

Good. Now it was time to make some arrangement. While walking down an alley, Lyle pulled out his phone and dialed the only other number he could call and trust, besides his parents. A familiar voice answered on the other side of the line.

" _Listen. Somethin`s come up. I can't go back come. I`ll need a place to crash for a night or two!_ " he talked in a hushed whisper.

" _Yes, yes! No that's not it. Can't talk any longer. I`ll be there by dusk. See ya!_ "

"Hey you!" Lyle froze stiff as he heard the booming voice. He turned around and saw a police car parked nearby and a police officer walking towards him.

" _No!No!NO!NO!NO! Okay! Okay! Stay calm, you need to stay calm_..." the panicked Lyle told himself and tried to act casual in front of the policeman.

"Is there a problem, sir?" he asked, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

"What are you doing here kid?" the officer asked sternly. Lyle could tell from his tone that he was already looking at him with suspicion.

"Oh, nothing really, just taking a walk, getting some fresh air." Lyle answered nonchalantly. The officer gave him a scrutinizing glare. Lyle gulped and dug into his pocket.

"But..but enough about me, you wanted to ask something?" Lyle hastily added. The officer came closer until he was looking down at the boy.

"Yes, I did, but first of how about you pull down that hoody?" he ordered firmly. Lyle felt sweat dripping down his forehead.

"I...I..I can't, you see sir I...have this skin condition and I have to...

"I said to pull down your hood!" the officer repeated his demand, this time with a strong "I`m not playing games anymore" tone of voice. Lyle gulped even harder. He was done for...unless?

"Okay, okay, if you say so..." with lighting speed, Lyle pulled out the rag from his pocket and pressed it against the mans face. Caught by surprise, the officer inhaled a large amount of chloroform before easily pushing the 12 year old off him. But it was too late, quickly losing consciousness, the man collapsed to ground.

Lyle stood there gasping, unable to belive that he had managed to do it, but he did it. A smug grin formed on his face as he approached the unconscious policeman, feeling a great sense of pride and self-admiration.

"Nighty, night Officer Dumbass!" he whispered mockingly before running off as fast as he could. Those flat foots would never catch him!

...

Lynn was sitting alone on the couch, channel surfing. She hoped to find some sportscast that could help get her mind of todays events, but in her current sour mood no soccer tournament or a basketball one or a baseball one or literally anything other than a sudden news report of Kathleen having suffered a humiliating and hopefully painful accident would have cheered her up. She eventually gave up and turned the tv off. Sighting, she lied down on the couch and starred at the ceiling.

She hadn't heard a peep from her room in a while, and assumed Luan must have been taken a nap.

What happened to her sister and the knowledge that it would be posted all over the internet was bad enough, but not helping matters was the fact that Luan had texed all of their siblings (probably including the ones that were with their mother) that Lynn had a date, which wasn't true. The jock knew that if she suddenly got a call or a message from Lori, Leni or Luna she would instantly turn her phone off, and if they called on the house phone she would pull its plug.

She was at least glad that the other sisters that stayed with her were too young to squeal around and get overzealous about the mere thought of one of them dating, Lincoln on the other hand, she was certain would probably be pretty upset upon hearing about her nonexistent date, and likely wouldn't believe the truth. After all, she herself had acted overzealous and didn't believe him that he wasn't romantically involved with whatever random girl he had spoken to in the past and she would have often been the one to spread the news to the rest of the sisters, so why would this be different?

" _Karma`s a bitch._ " Lynn figured. And she didn't even want to think about the possibility that Luan may have even texted their father. He already didn't approve of her seeing Taylor, if he somehow got it into his head that Taylor was trying to date his daughter he would probably have a nervous breakdown. Lynn groaned and clutched her head with both hands.

All this frustration was exhausting. Closing her eyes, the jock felt like dozing off just to get some piece of mind.

" _Maybe I should just get out while I have the chance. Before the drama starts_." an exasperated Lynn mused.

" _I could just stay over at Ryan`s again, his room alone has more space than this dump of a home. Would his parents be okay with it?_ " Lynn quickly snorted.

" _It wouldn't matter, he wouldn't listen to them either way. He would probably tell me to get trough his bedroom window, meeting in secret would be more exitin` anyway. Even if he's busy, he probably wouldn't say no if I asked for something, he`s sweet that way_..."

Lynn smiled and felt flustered, but quickly jolted out of her thoughts. What was she thinking?!

At that moment she heard a door opening. A downbeat Lucy entered with Fang on her shoulder, just in time to see Lynnn sitting up. Lucy closed her eyes and sighed, Lynn really wasn't the person she had hoped to see right now.

"Lucy?!" the jock blurted out, a tad surprised.

"Lynn..." Lucy quietly replied, not knowing what else to say. An awkward silence ensued , as neither of the sisters usually made casual small talk with each other. Fang cowered a bit at seeing Lynn and quickly flew into the younger sisters room, which had its door open.

Lynn finally noticed that the goth was alone. The latter tried to walk to her room, but Lynn jumped over the couch and landed in her way. "Luce? Where are Linc and Lana?" she questioned.

Lucy looked up at her, but quickly glanced aside trying to avoid eye contact. Lynn got slightly irked and glared down at her little sister. "Well?"

"Lana met a friend along the way and went to help him take care of his pets..." Lucy reluctantly murmured.

"Kay...and what about Lincoln?"

Lucy bit her had dreaded that question. "He...he had to stay back at school." Lucy murmured again.

"For what? Why would he stay there?" Lynn asked sharply. She hated it when Lucy was being cryptic and she really didn't feel like dealing with it today.

Lucy glanced past Lynn and tried to think of an excuse to get away from her. "I have to feed Fang." she said quickly and tried leave. But Lynn suddenly grabbed her by the arm, more strongly than she intended to.

"Will you cut that mystery girl crap and just tell me where Lincoln is? I`m really not in the mood for your stupid riddles." Lynn exclaimed angrily.

"Let me go." Lucy cried and struggled to get free.

"Not until you answer my question." Lynn retorded. She groaned inwardly, why was Lucy being so difficult?

Lucy angrily glared up at the jock, but eventually gave in. "Alrght." she rhasped dejectedly. Lynn let her go and quickly felt bad upon seeing Lucy rub her soar arm, but she was too frustrated to calm down and apologize.

"Well? Where is he?" Lynn asked sharply.

"Detention..." the goth murmured bitterly.

"What?" Lynn asked in disbelief, this day was just getting worse. "What the hell did he do?"

"He punched out Chandler..." Lucy grumbled but her voice trailed off as she saw Lynn stunned into silence by the revelation before a smile grew on her face.

"Really?" the jock laughed in a jaunty way. "About time he did it, man I`m gonna have to congratulate him for that..."

"What? " Lucy was at a loss for words before growing angry. "Did you even hear what I just said?!"

"I did, but that rat-faced bastard had this coming for a long time, a few hours of detention are worth it. "

"No they aren't! Lincoln will be in trouble you idiot!" Lucy snapped while clenching her fists.

"Hey! Don't call me that you little pest!" Lynn snapped back, her temper getting the better of her.

Lucy didn't respond. Bitting her lip, she stormed into her room and slammed the door.

Once she was alone Lynn finally calmed down and quickly regretted acting out the way she did, she started to realize that Lucy had a point. Their father wasn`t going to react well upon hearing about Lincoln getting detention and she figured that Chandler probably didn't take the punch lying down and there must have been a fight.

This day really was only getting worse, Lynn knew she and the others had to rally together and help convince their father not to punish their brother. He did a public service by decking that insufferable prick as far as she was concerned and her sisters would undoubtedly agree, but she knew all too well the stance their father and most adults took about fighting.

She followed Lucy into her room and saw the goths backpack thrown on the floor and spotted Lucy lying on her top bunk with her back turned. Fang was also perched on the beds fraim and quickly hid out of sigh when Lynn looked at him.

"Go away!" Lucy muttered while cradling the frightened bat in her arms.

"Lucy will you please tell what the hell happened at school? Lincoln got into a fight and was caught doing it, wasn't he?"

"What did you think happened?" the goth muttered rhetorically. Lynn moaned in frustration. At least her suspicion was confirmed.

"Listen Lucy, this isn't the time to fight, we have to help Lincoln so that dad doesn't punish him!" Lynn called out from bellow, though her tone sounded less like she was trying to reason and more like a demand.

"Oh, so that finally dawned on you, nice..." Lucy couldn't help it but to retort with bitter sarcasm. Her sisters thick-headedness was unbearable, Lucy sometimes couldn't fathom how Lynn was 5 years her senior and yet Lucy felt that Lynn had the IQ of a spoiled toddler.

Lynn balled her fists in frustration, that was the second time today someone had unsubtly called her dumb, and it was even more demeaning coming from a 7 year old brat.

"Well at least I`m tryin` to do somethin` about it, instead of just bein` whiny and moody about it. I know you didn't get much sleep last time, but I believe you can put your crankiness aside for our brothers sake." Lynn tried to reason, but couldn't help but express it in a condescending way.

"Well if I'm so whiny and moody why don't you leave me be and go text chatting with your new boyfriend. I`m sure he`ll laugh his head off hearing that Lincoln was left to fester in detention." Lucy replied calmly and bitterly.

Now she was really pushing Lynn`s buttons. "He`s not my boyfriend!" the jock growled. "We don't have a freaking date and Luan was makin` up bullcrap! Will you stop actin` like a stupid child and listen to me!"

Lynn suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder and turned her head.

"Luan? Weren't you restin`?" the jock asked in surprise.

Luan rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Who can rest with all this ruckus?" she answered tiredly.

Before Lynn could open her mouth the teen raised her hand to silence her.

"I heard everything, Lincoln is in hot water." she said dejectedly.

"I know, and maybe you can help me get -an-Doom to tell me what exactly happened so we can help him." Lynn explained frustratingly while gesturing her arms at Lucy.

"Lucy? Could you please come down and tell us what happened?" Luan pleaded, but got no response.

Both sisters went silent and Luan pondered for a bit, before looking at Lynn.

"Maybe you should leave and let me talk to her." the comedian asked her.

"What? Why?" an annoyed Lynn replied.

Luan sighed. "Call it a sisters intuition, but I`m pretty certain that whatever happened between Lincoln and Chandler hurt her a lot as well, and your agressive approach isn't the way to get her to open up." she explained. It really didn't take a "sisters intuition" to figure that out, but Luan knew that Lynn was pretty bad at reading other peoples feelings.

Lynn was about to retort but stopped herself. Thinking back about how Lucy had acted, Luan`s assumption was completely right and it was pretty damn obvious, it wasn't like Chandler was above doing cruel things to younger kids. Lynn mentally kicked herself for being so oblivious and obliged.

"Alright, I`ll go." she said with more humility, then left the room and closed the door.

Luan climbed up the bed ladder so she could meet Lucy face to face. "Lucy, please talk to me. I know something bad must have happened to you and you know that you can trust me with it." she told her softly while gently nudging her.

Turning around with Fang still in her arms, Lucy finally looked at her and her eyes widened in surprise once she saw the rash on Luan`s neck and cheeks.

"What happened to you Luan?" she asked meekly. The teen sighed, knowing exactly what the goth was referring to.

She tried to force a smile. "That`s...not important right now...I`ll...tell you later, but first I want to hear what that Chandler jerk did to you and Linky..."

...

Lynn was once again sitting alone on the couch, slouching and trying to watch tv. At least she was sure that Lucy would open up to Luan so they could clear up this mess their brother was in.

Suddenly the door was pushed open and in comes a fuming Lisa. "This is unbelievable! Preposterous! Ludicrous! Demeaning!..." she stormed in ranting.

"Let me guess..." Lynn addressed her with an exasperated look and tone "...you had a bad day?" Like she really needed an answer. Lynn swore, if Lana came back home crying, saying her friends pets all spontaneously died from collective strokes, she would lose it.

The child prodigy fixed her eyes on the jock and walked closer. "You can wager Tesla`s Coil that I did..." Lisa elaborated in a more composed but still very angry tone "...as you all well know...I am less than a collective 253 days away from acquiring all of my Master`s degrees, with the highest of recommendations from all of the most brilliant academicians who educate those mediocre minded, so-called _adult_ students at the university which I soon won't be required to attend to any longer."

Lynn wasn't sure if she understood half of those words her toddler sister spoke, but she eventually figured the general gist of it. "So...you`re graduating? How's that a bad thing?" the jock asked sarcastically.

Lisa facepalmed, as if she had just heard the dumbest response in the universe. "Tha's not the cause for my grievance..." she snapped, her face turning red "...what were you envisioning that I was planning to do after "graduatng"? I desired to rise up in the scientific community, to become a professional and certified genius who would alter this world while simultaneously making a lucrative career out of it, to fund both my future and my future reasearch, and financially support my bankrupt wage slave of a father and my siblings who's respective dream careers of comic book illustrator and writter, humor based entertainer, world renowned olympics champion, ect, are all pipe dreams doomed for failure."

Lynn blinked, her mouth hanging slightly open as she tried to comprehend what Lisa was saying. The genius rolled her eyes. "I. Want. To. Be. A. Scientist. So I can earn money. And support my family." she repeated it as simplistically as possible.

"Oh...okay, but what exactly is your problem then?" Lynn asked, still looking puzzled.

"Well I was just informed, by the dean, the highest ranking authority over the academic unit no less, that I can't pursue my intend career because of an absurd, trivial inconvenience called "child labor laws". And guess what? All of my most respected professors were well aware of these so called "child labor laws" from the start, and when I confronted them about their abysmal communication skills they all claimed that they "did't know how to break it to me"! Can you believe the nerve!" Her face was turning even more red and she seemed like she was ready to errupt.

Lynn was still having a hard time making out what she was saying, something about not being allowed to work do to barely being 4 was the best she could gather. "I guess, so does that mean...?"

"It means I was swindled, robbed of my rightful destiny by a corrupt and unjust legal system! All my hard work and genius intellect will be for naught!" Lisa cried while getting teary eyed. She started pounding the floor with her fists and screaming.

"It not fair! It not fair! It not fair! It not fair! It not fair! It not fair! I want to be a real scientist! Those stupid poop heads are wrong and stupid and unfair! " she cried and threw a tantrum the way a regular toddler would. The crying gave Lynn migraines, but she did sympathize with her sisters plight, even if she didn't fully grasp what it was. She didn't want to repeat the same mistake she did with Lucy.

She picked the crying toddler in her arms and gave her a tight embrace. "There, there, you'll always be a real scientist in my book." Lynn tried to be comforting.

"You`re approval won't help me secure a job at secret government research facility studying extraterritorial lifeform and interdimensional travel." Lisa sobbed, with a small hint of sarcasm.

Lynn pouted with annoyance, but kept comforting her.

"Also...I know this is far less important than me being coned out of my rights, but I do not approve of your newfound relationship with that barbaric vagrant known as Taylor. No offense, but it`s frankly revolting and nauseating...and you're gonna have to receive your monthly cootie vaccines from now on." the toddler randomly added.

Lynn rolled her eyes, she was too mentally exhausted to throw another "he`s not my boyfriend!" fit. Instead she tried to clue her youngest sibling on current events. "Look Lisa, we have more important issues to worry about, Luan`s suffered a painful and humiliating attack at school and Lincoln`s in detention for getting into a fight."

"What?!" the teary eyed genius blinked in utter shock.

...  
Both Lynn and Lisa let Lucy and Luan talk things out. Lucy opened up to her teen sister about what had transpired on her school playground, and Luan was frankly appalled and disgusted by what she heard.

Chandler being a constant pain in the ass for her brother was old news, but what he did to Lucy just felt sick and inhumane to her, to mock her for her traumatic experience and even exploit it for cheap laughs. It wasn't like that kind of cruelty was anything new to her, but to hear it coming from kids who didn't even graduate grade school still felt shocking, she did not remember her bullies being that cruel when she was Lucy`s age.

But then again, her younger self never suffered something as severe as a mauling by a wild animal, so maybe it was just lucky coincidence.

She was currently hugging the little goth as they sat on the bottom bunk together, Fang meanwhile, was hanging from the ceiling, seemingly sleeping. Lucy was somewhat relived to have finally gotten things of her chest, but it took some courage for her to do it.

She had her head pressed against the teens chest, who in turn was gently stroking her sisters ebony hair, while looking aside with an expression of bottled up rage. If she had been there she would have gladly broken several bones in Chandlers body and knocked out several of his crooked teeth, and she would have taken any corporal punishment for it like a badge of honor.

Of course, Luan had also opened up about her terrible day and how she got her rash. Obviously this only made the goth even more depressed, but also more enraged. Chandler was a monster as far as she cared, but at least he never went this over the top or to such ludicrous extremes to make a single person miserable. The idea that someone as obseessively ruthless and persistent as Kathleen could exist only made her even more afraid of going to school.

"Lucy, I know I said this before, but I`m really sorry about what happened to you today. You and Linc deserve better, and that prick should be horse whipped..." Luan said softly, but her tone darkened towards the end.

"He said it was all for fun and that Lincoln was stupid for not being able to take a joke..." Lucy quietly recollected and felt her sister tense up in their embrace.

"Not taking a joke MY ASS!" Luan said angrily, not caring that she was swearing. "That wasn't even in the ball park of being a joke, that was just plain freaking sadism! What was even his punch line? Mentally scaring a little girl for life! If that's his idea of a harmless prank, I don't even want to think about what that basket case considers to be black comedy."

"I could say the same thing about that Kathleen. That witch needs to have a stake stabbed into her black heart." Lucy muttered with bitterness.

"I doubt that would be of much, if any use. She probably doesn't have a heart, but a black void in place of it." Luan replied with dry sarcasm and was surprised to hear Lucy make a small snicker.

"Well I`m sure we can do something, I know that every monster has a weakness. She`s probably like a siren or a kelpie, a creature that takes a beautiful and alluring form, but on the inside it's pure evil. I think I read somewhere that there are several ways to force these creatures to reveal their true, grotesque forms."

Now it was Luan`s turn to snicker. "Are you being serious or are you actually joking?" the comedian asked with more levity.

"A little bit of both. At least the metaphor is spot on and poetic, you have to admit that." the goth answered in a brighter tone.

Smiling, Luan shrugged her shoulders as she and Lucy let go of each other. "Can't argue with a poet."

Lucy smiled back. "And I`m sure Chandler can't argue with a comedian about what's a joke and what's not."

"So you're feeling better now, I take it? So do you think it's time we told the others what happened. I`ll do it if you don't feel comfortable with it." Luan suggested.

"I suppose..." Lucy agreed. "I just have one more question."

"Yes?"

"So you're sure that you too want to be homeschooled?" the goth asked, sounding rather hopeful.

"I told you already, that`s a done deal for me. I think it would be good for both of us. Plus, this way we can be classmates." Luan explained. Lucy smiled warmly.

"But we shouldn't ask dad about it until at least tomorrow. He`s sure to be exhausted when he returns home, even more so after he hears about all this drama..."

"Knock knock." They both looked foward to see Lynn and Lisa standing by the door. The former two became silent.

"I thought you liked these kinds of jokes Lu?" Lynn said after getting no reaction from Luan. Luan stayed quiet, unsure of how to respond, making Lynn feel awkward.

"Eh, should we leave..."

"No Lynn, please you guys need to come in." Luan invited them in.

Lisa approached the two. "Luan, I`m deeply sorry for what you have endured today..." the genius said sympathetically, and then turned towards Lucy. "And from what I could infer, that auburn-haired neanderthal has caused you great harm as well Lucy. I sincerely hope that you can describe his misdeeds to us."

Lucy stayed quiet, but Luan gave Lisa a smile. "Thank you Lisa. And we will."

The four sat together in a circle on the carpet.

They all knew Luan`s story at this point, all that was left was to hear Lucy`s. Luan explained it to the other two sisters for her. After hearing it, they were both left utterly disgusted. Lynn in particular felt even more horrible for getting angry at Lucy.

"And you all had the audacity to refer to my past self as cold and unfettered. In hindsight, those accusations were wildly embellished." Lisa stated, not for the sake of trying to defend her past attitude but more to express her own shock at the cruelty her sisters were subjected to.

"Yeah, yeah, maybe. But what do you guys propose we should do to get Linc out of trouble." Lynn quickly got to the point.

"I really don't know, if Lincoln threw the first punch dad`s not gonna take this lightly." Luan pointed out sadly.

"An unfortunate truth." Lisa agreed while rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "Adults tend to take an unjustly neutral stance when regarding physical confrontations, regardless of the individual offenders moral alignment."

Lynn pondered for a bit. "Well, I guess there's only one thing we can do."

 **Phew, at long last chapter 4 is done. After a bit of a hiatus I try to return with a lengthy chapter, but damn it, I did not anticipate it to be this absurdly long. That's because I found myself having a rare opportunity to write this during several days of complete free time during Eastern, but I also included this much stuff into one chapter because I wanted to be done with the set up as quickly as possible, but it would appear that I still have to go trough at least another chapter before I can even try to go trough what can be considered the main plot.**

 **And Lyle, the bully who broke Lana`s arm and beat Luan to a bloody pulp with a baseball bat in my first fic, has finally returned to seek vengeance, and the next chapter will reveal who his mystery ally is, here's a hint : the character has already appeared in this fic. If you happen to be a particularly close minded LH fanboy who follows fandom memes to a T, then the revelation might blow your mind, and it might insult you (in which case I won't care if it does ;P)**

 **Without revealing any further spoilers, till next time.**


	5. Ninja Cyber Heist & Family Discussions

**The story continues. This chapter will go a little of track with a sub-plot that feature a certain element that, if you`ve enjoyed it in the episode Insta-Gran, you`ll enjoy it here.**

It was late afternoon, the sky was turning red and starting to get cloudy. Lynn had taken a stroll to her old elementary school. It wasn't exactly a short walk, quite the opposite, but that was precisely the reason why she preferred to go on foot there and back home when she was still an elementary student. She never said no to a chance for exercise.

Waiting for her brother, she leaned against the school fence and smiled fondly after observing the playground, remembering back when she, Margo and several of her other friends used to go there during every recess.

After a short while she saw a few kids, among them Chandler, running out of the building trough the main entrance. Lynn felt tempted to grab the little prick herself and teach him a lesson, but she held herself back. He wasn't worth the trouble, not now at least.

" _Another time..._ " she told herself.

Lynn did smirk with satisfaction, feeling pleased and proud of her brother, after she got a good look at Chandler`s blacked eye and the the peculiar-looking bruise on his arm, which she, having had plenty of personal experience fighting herself, recognized as a bite mark.

Once they were all gone, Lynn finally saw her brother pushing the door open and walking out. He carried a melancholic and shameful look as he took one unhurried step after another down the stairs before proceeding to walk down the sidewalk, obviously not chipper about having to explain his little scuffle to their father. Sighing, Lynn finally made herself noticed.

"Well, if it isn't my trouble making brother! You sat out your sentence, I see." she greeted him cheekily. Lincoln was startled, surprised that he had ran into her.

"Lynn?" the white-haired boy blurted out as Lynn met him face to face and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Why...what are you doing here?" he asked, feeling bemused.

"I heard how you got into your first real brawl bro..." she answered casually and gave him a strong pet on the back "...and I wanted to met you alone so I could personally congratulate you for it. You've made me proud."

Lincoln shamefully shifted his gaze away from her. "It wasn't like that..." he muttered. Being praised for that was the last thing he expected.

Lynn`s hardy laugh cut him off. "Don`t be so modest Linc, I know you decked Chandler and knocked his lights out, that bastard had it comin` for years." she pointed out encouragingly.

Lincoln fidgeted dejectedly. "It was just a lucky shot. He would have creamed me if and my friends hadn't interfered." she said sullenly.

Lynn could tell that Chandler had given her brother a fair fight, judging by the respective bruises on his neck and face, but she also knew based on Lucy`s account that Lincoln did more than just get one lucky jab.

"No Linc, it was him who got a few lucky shots, and it was him who was lucky that the others pulled you away from him. Don't try denyin` it, I heard the whole story." Lynn pointed out, not allowing Lincoln to underplay his own moment of glory.

The boy sighed. "I doesn't matter, Lynn. I lost my temper and I did something I shouldn't have done, now I`m gonna be in big trouble."

Lynn scowled, slightly irked, and put her arm around him.

"Don`t be so melodramatic bro, it was just one scuffle." Lynn told him rousingly.

"Yes it was, and they're against the rules." Lincoln pointed out miserably. Lynn rolled her eyes while smirking.

"So you got detention for it? Big deal, I had gotten detention for pummelin` scumbags like Chandler plenty of times, and I'm still fine and goin` strong." she countered proudly.

"Those corporal punishments, as they call them, are just hahalfhearted attempts to scare you into bein` obedient, by forcin` ya to sit in solitude for hours and bore yourself to death. You should wear your detention record like an olympic medallion, to show those bullies that you mean business. Which you have shown them very well today. And let's not forget that you did it all to protect Lucy, just like how I had protected you when we were little, remember?" she finished and gave him a proud smile.

"I...I do." Lincoln recolected fondly, but his smile faltered. "You were dragged to the principals office several times for it."

Lynn shrugged her shoulder. "Meh, it was no biggie, such experiences only made me stronger, and they`ll do the same to you. And the point of it was that we were sending a message to those bullying numbskulls : you mess with one Loud, you mess with all of us!"

"I guess you're right Lynn..." Lincoln smiled humbly.

"You know I am, now how about I buy you a drink, and maybe a burger, from one avenger of the innocent to another." Lynn said exuberantly while prompting Lincoln to start walking with her, her arm still wrapped around his shoulder.

"You have the money for it?" Lincoln asked her.

"Sure, I..I found a seven dollar bill in my ol`duffel bag, some luck, eh?" Lynn fibbed, still respecting the actual monetary doner`s wish to stay anonymous.

"Luck? I don't remember any of us having that kind of stuff lately." Lincoln joked.

"Well our fortune could always change." Lynn retorted with sincerity.

"Yeah..." then something hit Lincoln. "Wait! What about dad? I`ll have to explain myself to him!" he pointed out, panicking.

Lynn shook her head with a cheeky smirk. "No, right now you're goin` for a drink with me. As for dad, don't worry. Your sisters will be handlin` things and I promise ya, you won't be gettin` grounded this time." Lynn explained reassuringly.

"But how can you girls convince him, after all I did start the fight." a nervous Lincoln pointed out.

"Don`t worry about it, we have our ways..." Lynn replied nonchalantly.

...

Taylor came back down to the kitchen to retrieve a bottle of cola he had stashed in the fridge. Dusk would be coming soon, meaning it would be time for him to make his move and teach someone a lesson.

On his way back, he ran into Roy on the stairs, the latter was carrying a duffel bag on his shoulder.

"Goin` for an afternoon hike." Taylor asked with a casual smirk, his tone mostly indifferent.

"No, you said you didn't want me to be here, so I called a friend and he was okay with having a sleepover. His mom is waiting in the driveway to pick me up." Roy answered plainly.

"A sleepover? Meh, I only needed you take a hike a tomorrow..." Taylor rubbed his chin, though his tone remained rather disinterested "...but whatevs, you go and have your fun bro." Taylor patted Roy on the head, much to the latters annoyance, and went upstairs without exchanging another word.

" _Oh if only gettin` rid of Renee was that easy_." Taylor thought as he strolled towards his room.

" _You did what?_ " Taylor halted in his tracks as he heard his sister talking to someone on the phone. He couldn't resist to eavesdrop.

Renee moaned in annoyance. " _Alright, I`ll be there_."

She soon walked out of her room, wearing a small backpack, but jolted in surprise when she came across her brother leaning casually against the wall. "Goin` somewhere?" he asked smarmily.

"Were you spying on me?" she growled with tranquil furry.

"Yup." he answered nonchalantly. "So, goin` off to help a friend in need? Didn't you have a novel to read or somethin`?" he chatted with her.

"That`s not your concern dweeb." she hissed hostility and walked by him. "And for your information, I have already finished my book and I`ll be back by tomorrow, so don't try anything stupid." she warned him irritably.

"Wait? You're stayin` with your friend for the night?!" Taylor was caught off guard.

Renee stopped by the stairs as she gripped its rails, not bothering to face her brother. "Yes I am, so _please_ try not to set the house on fire while I`m gone." she told him with bitter sarcasm before rushing down the stairs and closing the door shut.

Taylor was left speechless, and stared blankly at the door. He couldn't believe his luck. He had the house all to himself for the night, the universe must have been smiling at him today.

He eagerly started pondering about all the things he could do now to enjoy himself.

" _Wait!_ "Something suddenly dawned on him. With both Renee and Roy gone, he didn't need to try to stealthy sneak out of the house and back in after paying Kathleen a visit.

This made him groan and shake his head. His sister always found a way spoil his fun in some capacity.

...

Lynn and Lincoln were sitting together at Burping Burgers. They had both a cola cup, and for her brother, Lynn had additionally ordered a large hamburger, after he had told her how he had skipped breakfast today and how detention stopped him from grabbing something for lunch.

Before their menu arrived, Lynn had clued her brother in about what had happened to Luan. Like the rest of them, Lincoln was appalled to hear it and wished to consult her as best as he could once they returned home.

Lynn slurped her drink while watching her brother hungrily gulp down his burger.

"So was it good?" she asked him intuitively after he had finished.

"Anything tastes good after you go all day without eating." Lincoln joked.

"Well I thought about buyin` you some mac and cheese, but you know we're on a budget. Plus me and dad made a unanimous vote to help cure your addition to that stuff." Lynn laughed.

Lincoln shot her an irked glance, but soon smiled. "No, no, it was good. Thanks sis."

" I`m sure it was. So Linc, can you tell me how it feels walkin` away from your first brawl?" Lynn probed cheekily.

Lincoln`s smile dropped. "Lynn I told you, it's not something I wanna talk about or something I`m proud about."

Lynn raised an eyebrow. "And why not?" she asked him semi-seriously. "I took every bruise I ever got like a badge of honor if I kicked some jerk`s ass." she stated proudly.

Lincoln looked at her seriously. "Lynn, violence and fighting isn't the answer to your problems. It only makes them worse." He gulped slightly. "You remember Lyle?"

Lynn`s face darkened. "I do." she answered bitterly, then sighed and deflated.

"You're right bro, violence isn't the answer. But some people don't see it that way, and life doesn't always give you a chance to resolve things peacefully. Thugs like Lyle and Chandler don't listen to reason, they only speak the language of the fistacuffs. It's not fair, but it's how it is, and you should never hesitate to defend yourself." she explained poignantly.

"I guess that is true..." Lincoln sighed.

"It is, I know from experience that bullies only get worse as they get older, Chandler and his cohorts are likely no exeption. They probably won't be as bad as someone like Lyle, but you should stay weary of them a lot more now." Lynn continued with a serious demeanor.

"I suppose..." Lincoln responded sadly.

Unfortunately, his sister was very right about this, he had little reason to doubt her expertise. While Lynn wasn't the most contemplative of his sisters, not by a long shot, she probably was the most experienced in dealing with bullies head on.

His thoughts wandering, Lincoln decided to ask her about something else, something which had been bothering him all day.

"But what are we gonna tell dad so he won't ground me?" Lincoln spoke aloud.

Lynn smiled sympathetically. "The girls are workin` on it right now. Long story short, they'll tell dad how things went down, includin` you protectin` Lucy. But they`ll leave out the part about you throwin` the first punch and tell him that Chandler attacked you unprovoked."

Lincoln was surprised. "What? But that's...that`s lying, Lynn."

"It only a small white lie." the jock calmy reasoned.

"But we can't just lie to our own father, that isn't right." Lincoln argued. His sister shot him an irked glare.

"Like that isn't the very thing Chandler is doin` right now?" Lynn retorted sharply.

"You know he`ll be pullin` the innocence card and say that you attacked him for no reason, even though he provoked you by harassin` Lucy for kicks, and gave you every possible reason to be pissed off? So you really think that it's fair if you're completely honest to your folks, when he won't be?"

Lincoln became silent. Lynn had a point, Chandler had very much provoked him and he would probably lie and twist the truth to make Lincoln look like the bad guy as much as possible to save his own behind. Why should he take that lying down?

"No, it's not..." he grumbled. Lynn gave him an encouraging smile.

"Now you're talkin`..." she beamed "...now you just need to memorize our cover story about how Chandler attacked you and we`re free to go."

Lynn told him what to say in specific detail. Lincoln never came to peace with the idea of lying to his father, but his sister convinced him to go trough with it on account of his noble actions and intentions. After that, the two siblings had some time left to just unwind and enjoy each others company.

Lincoln finished sipping his cola. "You know Lynn, it was fun spending some time with you, just the two of us. It's been a while since we spent any quality time together." he mentioned absentmindedly.

"Yeah, things have been pretty crazy lately." the jock admitted, thinking about things like how her brother had been stuck in bed for weeks, the various games she had to practice for and attend, and, of course, school and her efforts to integrate Taylor into normal junior high society, despite his repugnant reputation.

But that wasn't the only reason, as the two were still struggling to think of activities that they could mutually enjoy, given their vastly different interests. Lynn was facing the saddening possibly that she just wasn't and couldn't be as close to her only brother as she wanted to be, while the other sisters were seemingly becoming even closer with him, especially Lucy.

"That`s an understatement..." his voice brought her out of her thoughts. His expression suddenly became sadder.

"You know, I was thinking that all six of us could have done something together this weekend, you know some fun and stimulating family activity. But then I learned that Luan had her job to do, and that you had...your own plans..." his voice trailed of at that point.

" _Oh boy, here it goes_..." Lynn groaned inwardly.

She locked eyes with her brother, trying to deduce his current emotional state. He was quite reserved and his expression was unreadable, mainly as he himself knew he had just opened a can of worms and wasn't sure what to say. But seeing his sisters nervous and uncomfortable demeanor, he decided to speak first.

"So...Taylor asked you out then?" he asked awkwardly, his voice trailing off again.

Lynn sighed exasperatedly. "Linc, you're the _sanest_ family member I have, so I believe that you, of all people, should listen me out. It's _not_ a date, he just asked me to swing by his place tomorrow so we could hang out as friends, that's it." she told him seriously and sincerely.

" _Sounds like your idea of a date, in everything but name._ " Lincoln thought inwardly, but didn't say it out loud.

"Oh I see..." he replied in a small voice. Lynn blinked, this was easier than she had expected. Or was it?

"Lincoln? You believe me, right?" she asked him directly.

Lincoln shifted slightly, truth be told he wasn't entirely convinced. But he felt a moral obligation to trust his own sister. He just needed to know if she would safe.

"No,no-I mean yes I believe you sis." he told her and made a small, nervous laugh. Lynn raised an eyebrow, she could tell from his shaky voice that he had his doubts. She sighed inwardly, what did she she expect?

"So...Taylor? How...has he been doing?" Lincoln asked intuitively.

Lynn was surprised. She hadn't expected him to ask that. Lincoln frankly didn't approve the idea of Lynn being simply friends with Taylor either, but he understood that his sister had the right to a personal life and to choose her friends as she would want it.

"He`s been doin` fine, all things considered." Lynn started casually. "He has been left with some battle scars and lost a finger to ol`One-Eye, but he hasn't let that drag him down."

Lincoln winced as she said that, not wanting to think about his own plethora of scars that were hidding just under his shirt, and the painful memories they would conjure up.

"He said that spendin` time with me was the best time he had in a long while." she smiled fondly as she said that.

Lincoln felt only more at unease. "So...you`ve enjoyed spending time with him? Has he really changed?"

"Well, he`s never goin` to be an angle, if you were expectin` that." Lynn said jovially.

"But he has quit the bullyin` business for good, it's just _a tad_ harder to convince the rest of the kids at school that he has turned over a new leaf. And I have enjoyed spendin` time with him, I know, it must sound crazy given my attitude towards him a month ago, but I`ve gotten to know him better since then, and really, if you can just get him to dial back the smug Smart Alec shtick and open up a bit, he`s actually pretty fun to be around."

Lincoln tried to force a smile. "Well, sounds like you've managed to help him turn his life around. Guess that's one less bully for the kids of Royal Woods to worry about." he mused awkwardly.

He saw Lynn giving him a knowing smile. "Linc, I know what you're thinkin`."

"You do?" he stuttered.

Lynn`s smile then dropped a bit. "Of course, I know you wanted to spend time with me and arrange some family activity for all of us do, but I can't bail on Ryan..."

" _Oh swell, she's on first name basis with him_." a nervous Lincoln thought. Not even Taylor`s former so-called-friend Lyle called him by his first name. This did not ease his suspicion that his sister had a thing for the former.

"...after all he has been grounded for a month, this will be his first two days as a free kid followin` his punishment, and I have been lookin` forward to spendin` some time with him. But don't worry, Linc. Next weekend I`m definitely goin` to be free, I can't speak for the others, but I'll definitely clear up my schedule for you bro. Ryan, Margo, they will all know in advance that next week I`m booked out for family bonding.

Lincoln smiled weekly. "Thanks sis, but that wasn`t quite everythin`..."

"It wasn't?" Lynn blinked.

"No..." Lincoln`s voice trailed off once again and he eventually sighed. There was no point in dragging it out, he needed to know.

He gave her a firm and serious look. "Lynn, I just need to know. I know how Taylor can be when he's in the wrong mood and he hasn't hurt you in any way, right?" he was trying to sound serious, but his voice grow increasingly shaky. "He hasn't hit you or.."

Lynn blinked in silence before her light-hearted chuckling cut Lincoln off.

" _So that`s what's been eating him up. His concern is so adorable_." she thought endearingly.

"Linc, Linc, you have nothin` to worry about. If Ryan had hit me or mistreated me even once I would have ended our friendship a long time go. You know I wouldn't just take somethin` like that, and I have made it clear to him from the start that he needed to change if he valued me as a friend, and he has. You have nothin` to be concerned about." she explained to him reassuringly and scotted over, until she sat next to him and wrapped her arm around his neck.

"Oh...that`s good." Lincoln replied, feeling quite relieved. Lynn then forced his head down and gave him a noggie.

"Don`t you worry your snowy little head about me falling in with the wrong crowd." she told him humorously. "I would never lie to my favorite brother."

"Yeah right, I`m your only brother." Lincoln joked while freeing himself from her grip and then straightening his hair.

"All the more reason for me to cherish havin` ya." Lynn shrugged her shoulders before looking at him deviously.

"I know you can't relate to that, as you take havin` plenty of sisters for granted. You probably see me as expendable." Lynn joke while bumping her younger brother in the shoulder.

Lincoln smirked at her."Lynn, you gotta give me more credit. I value having all of you girls as my sisters. And I do value having _sisters_. I dreamed several times about having nine brothers instead, and let's just say those dreams tended to quickly turn into nightmares."

The two siblings shared a healthy fit of laughter. "Yeah, sure you did. Good one bro." Lynn elbowed him before taking a look trough the window.

"Yeah, it was..." Lincoln said awkwardly while looking to his side. Lynn meanwhile saw how dusk was quickly approaching.

"Come on bro, it's getting dark, we should get home." she told him.

Lincoln looked at the sky and nodded. "You're right, don't wanna get both of us into trouble. Fighting at school won't tick off dad nearly as much as staying out past dark."

With that the two siblings rushed back home.

On their way back they stopped in front of an old werehouse as they were temporarily hindered by traffic. Starting to feel a bit chilly, Lincoln hugged himself for warmth.

"Darn it, I should have brought a jacket..." he complained. He realized that wearing his orange t-shirt soon won't be enough.

Lynn was doing better with her long sleeved jersey, but red sports shorts didn`t help her from feeling the cold breeze brushing on her legs. "Yeah, summer fun is definitely over." she replied, slightly peeved.

Atumn and especially winter weren't the most inviting times in the Midwest, especially not for outdoor loving athletes.

They soon got an opening that allowed them to move on. However, above them on the second floor of the abandoned, disheveled building, someone watched them from the darkness.

Seeing these two made Lyle boil with rage as he gripped a rusty piece of metal. Thoughts of hurting those freckled freaks, especially the ponytailed braggart cunt, seeped trough his mind but the sight of police lights in the distance made him retreat into his shadowy hideout. He had to keep his anger in check and stay focused, soon he would have to move.

Only then, he heard a crack of thunder, followed by several more. Lyle looked at the cloudy sky and saw a zap of lightning.

" _You gotta be shitting me."_ he growled trough gritted teeth.

...

The Tisdale mansion, the place that Kathleen called home, was a sight to be behold. And envy.

At the very edge of the wide and expensive property, standing on its nicely trimmed lawn and surrounded by likewise smoothly trimmed conifers and bushes, was a smaller building, looking almost like a very fancy private motel. It was this place that the well known queen bee of Royal Woods junior high called her "modest, little clubhouse" and where she and her closest friends would met for important events and important meetings a.k.a gossiping and lounging around pampering themselves. It was essentially the wealthy teen`s headquarter.

Outside, roaming the property freely, were two vigilant guard dogs. Both were strolling along trough the cool air under the darkening and clouded sky, their strong vision making it easy to fulfill their duties even under limited light. Suddenly, both dogs growled, their pointy ears raised on high alert as they detected something being thrown over the wall and landing on the lawn.

They instinctively went to inspect the foreign objects only to realize they were two slabs of beef. The two canines didn't need much persuasion to quickly and greedily grab their own piece of meat and wolf them down.

" _Have a nice meal guys, I hope you liked the added spice of sleepin` pills._ " Both dogs had eaten their fill when they heard a strange voice coming from an unknown direction. They both growled menacingly at the sound of the intruder, but couldn`t locate him. They didn't get the chance for a search, as both soon started feeling drowsy and light on their feet, and soon both of them kneeled down on the grass before lying on their sides.

The world around them started feeling more trippy as they made out a soothing voice say " _Nice doggies. Good doogies. Just ease your minds and let the sandman take you away, I`m just here to steal somethin` from the wretched spawn of your masters loins._ " before finally dozing off.

Hearing the loud snoring, a group of lose bricks, hidden conveniently behind some bushes, were pushed foward revealing an entrance that allowed a figure to crawl into the other side.

Once inside, he rose to his full height and approached the slumbering canines.

" _Doberman Pinchers? Classy._ " the person thought snidely before shifting his attention to the "clubhose". He was wearing a black Chinese-esque vest, exept with short sleeves, and with gray trimmings, along with a backpack and a strap over his chest holding two grenades, and a black ninja mask with a single slit for the eyes.

" _Millions of people are starvin` in Africa while this spoiled broad gets to lounge around callin` this mini-mansion a "clubhouse", there is no justice in this world_." he snarked mentally, before pulling out and slipping on his old pair of black sports gloves.

" _Rule number one of breakin` and enterin` : never leave finger prints_." he joked to himself before looking up once again at the mini-mansion. It had two floors, but the upper one was largely devoid of light, only the left room of the lower one was heavily lit, while one the upper rooms had the very dim light of a computer or laptop glowing within it.

Sensing a strong sensation of thrill and excitement, the boy grinned devilishly underneath his mask. " _Well Ryan, time to give your stealth skills some exercise_."

Taylor focused in on one of the upper windows, the dark one, and only got more excited. There was no way he was going to just go trough one of the lower windows like some out of shape burglar, where was the fun in that.

He pulled out a rope attached to a grappling hook, how he got it no one but him would know. He swung it and threw it up, it hooked onto the windows frame with ease. Tighning the rope, Taylor began his ascend up the wall. In no time he was climbing trough the window and landed into the dark room gracefully and stealthily.

The masked preteen surveyed his surroundings, his eyes quickly adjusting to the dim light. He soon realized that he was in the middle of what could charitably be described as Kathleen`s dress closet. It was filled to the brink with overpriced clothing from sundresses to slim prom dresses, skirts, blouses, fashion boots and a whole heap of other girly closet junk.

Carefully sneaking trough the sea of fashion accessories, Taylor opened the door and found himself in front of a dark corridor covered by a dark red carpet. At the end of it was another door, left slightly open and emitting the faint, blue-ish glow which he had seen from the outside, next to it was a staircase going down. Bellow him he could hear voices. Crouching down and sneaking bellow the rails, he soon got there and got a good look of the interior bellow.

He saw Kathleen and Jenny sitting on a long, pink luxury sofa, with a giant flat screen tv in front of them, which was playing some Dawson`s Creek-esque sappy teen melodrama, and two vases holding palm tree stood to their sides. They were both wearing bright red bathrobes and had their hair tied up in curlers.

And they were both wearing pale white facial masks, not exactly a pretty sight to behold. Jenny was preoccupied painting Kathleens nails.

Not far from them, Amber was relaxing in a jaccusi next to a small bar, submerged up to her neck in the bubbling water and wearing cucumber chips over her eyes. All of this made up Kathleen`s "clubhouse".

It was grating to see the shallow, spoiled bimbos enjoying themselves, and he felt tempted to unleash his grenades right now, but Taylor stayed silent.

He needed to find the film first, seeing how the girls were completely oblivious and immersed in the quiet and relaxing atmosphere of their private lounge, and how the corridor he was in was not lit, Taylor evaluated that he wouldn't compromise his position by rising up and leaning his elbows against the rails while tilting his head foward, but not out of the shadows.

He was confident that the chatty teen girls would eventually spill out the info he desired, he only needed to stay focused and make out what they were saying.

"So Kathleen, when do you suppose the video will be finished?" Jenny asked with intrigue.

" _Yeah, tell us."_ thought Taylor while smirking.

"Very soon, I plan to air it on my channel at 9 p.m, the prime viewing hour for our generation. Our classmates were already eagerly awaiting it and have spread the news all over facebook, twitter and every other piece of social media imaginable, so I expect the video to hit 2 million views before midnight." Kathleen gleefully explained.

" _So I was rigth! I guess devious minds think alike._ " Taylor mused.

"That`s true, but why did we need to invite that fashioned challenged nerd to our clubhouse, surely we could have put together that video by ourself." Jenny voiced her complaint.

Taylor was now listening closely, he had a _hunch_ that he was getting warmer.

Kathleen chuckled with amusement. "Oh sweet and innocent Jenny, thinking just never was your thing. Let me lay it out for you. Firstly, why should we condemn ourselves with menial work when I can just pay twenty dollars to a lower class flunkie to do the work for us."

"And secondly, I want my video to be put together as professionally and visually impressive as possible. Say what you will about Kelly, and there are plenty of abhorent things to comment about her, but she knows her cinematography, making her the ideal employee for this task."

" _Kelly?_ " Taylor pondered, the name sounded slightly familiar to him. " _Isn't she one of those stage kid dorks from the drama club at school? I yes I remember, mousy little dweeb with glasses and a beanie hat_." Taylor remembered and turned his head towards the door in front of him, which was emitting the dim glow. Kelly had to be there.

He looked back down at the lounge, where the girls continued their conversation.

"I`ve downloaded all of the footage to my personal laptop, including the phone footage all of those nitwitts so gratuitously donated, and from the hidden camera which we had so discreetly placed in the bathroom and in the classroom. As far as I know that`s everyone who caught my briliant prank on film and I entrusted it all to Kelly to make the final cut."

"Oh I understand now, you're so clever Kathleen!" Jenny praised her. "Luan will probably die of shame once your vid is up."

"I hope not, I have so much planned for her so she can _participate_ in some actual comedy acts." Kathleen laughed smarmily.

" _Yikes. Somebody needs a hobby..._ "Taylor snarked inwardly. That's a lot of dedication to humiliate someone you don't like.

He was suddenly startled, when Kathleen screeched in anger and jumped off the sofa.

" _What the hell happened?_ " the masked boy thought.

"You idiot, look at what you have done!" Kathleen roared while grabbing her robe, which from what Taylor could tell, looked smeared with paint or something?

"I`m sorry! It was an accident!" Jenny cowered fearfully. A furious Kathleen glared daggers at her, her eyes almost seeming to be on flames.

"You`ve spilled it all over my robe you blind, butter fingered klutzs! I`m going to kill you!" she lashed out at her friend.

" _Wow, someone is in need of anger management classes_." Taylor tried not to bust a gut.

"Something wrong there girls?" a dozy Amber asked half asleep from the jaccusi.

Taylor struggled not to laugh. " _This is almost too easy._ "

With a distraction now taking place, he crossed his arms behind his back and nonchalantly walked down the corridor. He nudged the door open with his shoulder and entered into what appeared to be a bedroom. There he found Kelly, slouched over a desk, facing the laptop.

He heard the exasperated girl moaning and she rested her head in her palm from exhaustion as she heard the footsteps.

"Kathleen please, I know we have a schedule, but I'm working as fast as I can." she complained in a pleading tone.

Taylor rolled his eyes as he walked towards her, hands still behind his back.

"Are you listening to me?" Kelly complained while lifting her glasses to rub her tired eyes. "Making a video is art, you can't rush art!"

Taylor was now on top of her and placed a firm hand on her shoulder. "Just twenty bucks, huh? I think you're bein` underpaid." he casually spoke while lowering his voice.

It hit the girl that this wasn't Kathleen`s voice, making her turn around abruptly and see who was standing behind her. Her eyes widening, she tried to scream but Taylor quickly grabbed her, restrained her and gagged her with his hand.

"Mmphmphhmm..." the frightened girl squirmed in his grasp.

"Shush. Shhhhh... relax sweetheart..." he whispered ominously"...I see you're tired, so I`ll give you a chance to rest."

"Mmphmphhmm..." the girl struggled and whimpered.

Acting quickly, Taylor pulled out the chloroform dipped rag from his pocket and pressed it against Kelly`s nose. She went limp almost instantly, and Taylor swiftly lifted her in his arms and placed her comfortably on the nearby bed.

He took her seat and noticed a glass of hot cocoa on the desk.

" _Good, this will be very useful_." the masked preteenb thought as he pulled out a flash drive and plugged it into the computer. He searched trough the existing folders and eventually found one labeled "Tin Teeth", where he found over 50 videos all stacked together.

He wasted no time downloading them over into his flash drive. But it was a slow, tedious proces, so he viewed some of the videos to kill time. Many were cut outs from the Luan footage, edited in different ways or with some flashy affects added to them. Others were of Kathleen herself talking to the audience, explaining her plan and at least one where she gave a very derogatory video profile of Luan, via footage of her being mocked and ostracized.

Finally, the downloading process was over. Taylor quickly checked if he could find any more footage of Luan, but found none. He tucked the flashdrive into his pocket and subsequently took the glass of hot cocoa and spilled it all over the laptop, just to be certain, which soon started fuming and sparkling with electricity.

" _Ah, it warms my heart to see a cyber theft slash sabotage go down as planned."_ Taylor looked at his handywork with satisfaction as the laptop crashed. He then stroked his grenades.

" _Now it's time for the_ _ **fun**_ _part!_ " he thought gleefully.

"Kelly! Are you finished yet you useless layabout!" he suddenly heard Kathleen yelling and going upstairs.

" _Show time!_ " Taylor eagerly anticipated her arrival and got up from the chair.

As the enraged Kathleen entered the room, she was surprised to see Kelly sleeping on her bed and the laptop turned off.

"What the hell!?" she blurted angrily.

Getting agitated, she stormed towards the bed and grabbed the unconscious girl by her shoulder and started violently shaking her.

"Get up you idiot! Who the hell gave you permission to sleep on the job AND IN MY BED!" her thunderous yelling failed to get any response from Kelly, who only gently breathed in and out, like a sleeping angle.

Shaking with rage, Kathleen was ready to slap her awake when a small spark flied from the laptop. Startled, she moved to investigate it and quickly noticed that something sticky was all over the desk upon touching it.

Hidding behind the curtains, Taylor came out to reveal himself. " _Good evening my dear_." he greeted her in a lower and rhaspier voice.

Turning around, Kathleen yelped at the sight of the masked intruder and screamed.

"Wha...how are you?! What`s going on here!?" she cried in a fearful tone.

As he casually started strolling towards her, Kathleen quickly and clumsily circled around him towards the door.

"Stay away from me you crook! I`m warning you!" she panicked with a loud, shrill voice.

Eyeing her ominously, Taylor snickered and put his hands up in the air.

"Oh, looks like you caught me right in the act ma`am. I surrender!" he declared sarcastically.

The terrified teen girl grabbed a nearby umbrella and held it like a weapon. "Don't you dare touch me..." she threatened in a shaky voice "...d..do you have any idea who I am ?!"

His mask obscured the biggest smirk Taylor could muster, as he grabbed hold of his stink grenades. "Oh, I know who you are..." he said darkly "... you're the girl who`s gonna reek real badly."

He pulled the grenades off his strap, detaching them from their safety levers in the process. Taylor then made an X posture with his arms for dramatic effect.

"HIYA!" he threw them at Kathleen who ducked just in time, and they flew over her. One hit the wall and bounced back down the coridor, while the other one found its way down the stairs.

Kathleen stumbled backwards as Taylor boldly charged at her, causing her to trip over the grenade. As she hit the floor, Taylor stopped to close the door behind him and then leered at her.

"Well this has been tremendously fun, but I must be goin` now. Ain't I stinker? he jocked as he pulled out and threw several smoke bombs at the floor.

Kathleen closed her eyes and caughed as the smoke engulfed her. Bellow her, her two friends screamed as the whole lounge was engulfed in a huge cloud of green, fowl smelling gas.

Above them, the smoke had cleared up and Kathleen saw that the mysterious intruder had vanished.

The moment she realized that, she was surrounded and soon blinded by a different cloud of foul smelling gas that assaulted her nasal cavities and made her skin itch like crazy. With no way to escape Kathleen could only scream in terror.

...

The sudden and abrupt rain storm had caught them by surprise. With booming thunder and lightning zapping trough the sky, the downpour was getting more and more intense. Lynn and Lincoln were forced to take shelter within a convenience store.

"Damn it! My phones is dead." Lynn cursed loudly as they walked down an isle, getting some odd looks from customers passing by.

"You know Lynn, you really have a problem remembering to charge your phone." Lincoln pointed out.

"Hey, at least I remembered to bring mine!" the jock retorted. Lincoln looked away, he didn't usually think too much about bringing his phone to school, as there was rarely ever a need for it. But in hindsight, better to be safe than sorry, and he was the latter right now.

"Ugh, where did all of this rain even come from? I watched the weather forecast last night and they said we were in for clear skies for the rest of the week." the boy complained.

His sister snorted, a bit amused. "That surprised you? When was the weather forecast ever right?" she asked rhetorically.

"Guess you have a point..." Lincoln admitted sourly.

They both halted to a stop and jolted upon hearing a loud crack of thunder. They saw trough the windows that the rain was only getting worse, lighting was zapping trough the sky and the streets outside were now completely dark, besides the occasional street light.

"This is just swell..." Lynn moaned in annoyance as they walked towards the entrance door "...dad has probably returned by now and he`ll be mad as hell if we come home late."

"But what can we do? We can't just try to sprint trough the storm, it's still over half an hour till we reach home. I`m not sure if it is even safe for dad to drive trough such weather." Lincoln pointed out, growing ever more worried.

"No, especially after he`s no doubt exhausted as always from work..." Lynn mused and then pondered about their predicament.

She suddenly recalled that she had seen this store somewhere before, and the street outside, from what little she could tell, they also seemed familiar?

"Maybe we can stay here until the storm passes by?" she heard her brother making a suggestion. She looked at a sign on the glass door and subsequently groaned and shook her head.

"It won't do, this place closes by 7 p.m and I highly doubt this storm will go away that quickly."

Lincoln sighed. "Seriously? What now?"

"Well I`m pretty sure a friend of mine lives just a hopscotch away from here. We could take shelter there. I`m just not sure if you would like visitin` him." Lynn told him while rubbing her neck.

Lincoln smiled with relief. "Really? That's great Lynn, we sh..." he abruptly stopped and his smile dropped as his sister last statement registered with him.

He looked at Lynn oddly. "What do you mean I won't like..." his voice trailed off as he put two and two together. "Taylor? You're talking about him?" he asked, sounding a little unnerved.

Lynn nodded, not noticing her brothers unease. "Yup, we can visit him and call dad from there." she said with a smile.

"Ehh...I..." Lincoln tried to argue against the idea, but couldn't think of anything.

Lynn raised her eyebrow. "You okay bro? You seem a little skittish."

Well...it`s just..." the boy stuttered while rubbing his arm.

"Linc, are you scared of seeing him again?" she asked with some concern, but then snickered. "Why would you be scared?"

Her brother gave her a scowl. "Well excuse me, but as you may recall I don't have the best of experiences with that guy."

Lynn looked away, once again feeling foolish about being so obliviously insensitive. She then smiled compassionately and put her arm around him. "I`m sorry Linc, but ya got nothin` to worry about. That's ancient history, he`s changed."

Lincoln thought about it. Maybe he was being too paranoid, Taylor wouldn't hurt him, at least not with Lynn around, he was always trying to stay on her good side. Plus, it would only be a short stay. And they were really running out of options, besides having a race trough the storm.

"I suppose you`re right." he shrugged his shoulders. "We can call dad from there and tell him where to pick us up."

"Linc, I`m not sure if dad can pick us up under these conditions, maybe we'll just have to stay at Ryan`s over night." Lynn explained to him.

"What?" Lincoln went wide eyed.

"Why not?" Lynn shrugged casually. "It`s night already and I was gonna visit him tomorrow anyway. His parents probably aren't home right now so it won't be hard to arrange a sleepover. Besides, it would be fun." she beamed enthusiastically.

"Yeah fun for you. I`m sure he wouldn't be so anxious to have me stay over." Lincoln pointed out sourly.

"Don`t be such a worrywart, Linc." Lynn dismissed him. "So you two got off on the wrong start, this could be your chance to start over."

"But...if dad can't pick us up, he could...you know call a taxi or something." Lincoln tried to argue back.

"Linc, we`re on a tight enough budget as it is, I don't think dad will waste precious money if he doesn't have to." Lynn reasoned with him.

" _Is she just making excuses to be with him..."_ Lincoln started to shrewdly wonder. Truth be told, Lynn really was eager to have another sleepover with Taylor. But it wasn't the only reason.

"And you haven't seen his home yet, it's quite a nice place to crash in, it even has a large guest room..." Lynn added, trying to persuade her brother. "Just think about it, you could be sleepin` in your very own room tonight, instead of having to listen to Luan sleep joking all night!"

" _Or listen to you snorting like a warthog with sinus infections?_ " Lincoln added mentally. The prospect of once again sleeping in his own bed for a change was tempting. But he still had to consider in whos house he would be bunking in.

"I dunno..." he mused. But Lynn suddenly grabbed his hand.

"Come on bro, just me trust on this. I promise you, you won't regret it." she looked at him with an almost pleading look.

Lincoln still wasn't eager about the idea, but then something hit him. Their father wasn't exactly a fan of Lynn hanging out with Taylor either. Hearing this would probably give him all the stimulation he needed to forget that he was tired and immediately drive in to pick them up.

"Well okay Lynn, I`ll give it a try..." he answered and saw Lynn`s smile widening. "But..." he added "...we have to call dad first and see if he's okay with it."

"Thanks Lincoln, now come on!" In no time, the jock dragged her brother out and they bolted towards the nearest cover they could find under a large tree, continuing the same routine until they found Taylor`s home.

...

Lynn and Lincoln soon found themselves sheltering under another three, right in front of the Taylor`s house, and peaked over the wooden fence.

"See Lincoln, told you it was a nice place." Lynn said enthusiastically.

"I guess..." Lincoln replied begrudgingly before turning to his sister. "So...should we ring the...eh doorbell or..."

"What else did ya think we would do, you doofus? Break in?" Lynn joked teasingly. But then she noticed a figure climb over the other side of fence and rush towards the porch.

"What the...? Lincoln blurted out but Lynn shushed him, before looking at the figure suspiciously. He turned on the porch light and both siblings turned wide eyed. Was this a robber?

But then they saw the masked figure drop his backpack in a rather casual and relaxed manner and sigh before pulling a pair of keys from his pocket.

"This is no way for a ninja to enter a building, but where's the fun in sneakin` in when there's no one at home but me." Taylor grumbled aloud.

Lynn instantly recognized his voice and quickly clamped her hand over her own mouth and snickered uncontrollably, while grabbing Lincolns arm and making him duck down with her.

" _This can't be for real_..." she snickered in a muffled voice before taking in a deep breath to compose herself. Lincoln stared at her in utter confusion.

"What`s so funny? There's a..."

"Don`t sweat it bro, that's no burglar..." she told him pointing up, before rising to her feet.

"Just wait here for a second." she hastily told him as she quickly climbed over the fence.

"Wha-What are you doing?" Lincoln blurted out and tried to follow her, but quickly found out that he didn't have the strength to climb over the fence and plopped down on his butt unceremoniously.

With a bored look, Taylor unlocked the door and and tried to enter in.

"Did I drop in at a bad time?" The sudden voice startled Taylor. He jumped and turned around in a fighting stance, only to be met with a familiar and amused face.

"Lynn?!" he shook his head and stared at her in disbelief.

"Yep, it's me." she answered cheekily before checking out his outfit. "Huh, I knew you watched a lot of ninjutsu movies, but aren't you a little too old to be runnin` around cosplayin` as one?" she asked him with a teasing smirk.

Taylor still tried to register what was happening. Once he did, he was glad that he was wearing a mask so Lynn couldn't see him blushing furiously.

"Wut...wait that's not what I was doin`..." he said defensively "...wait a minute? What are you doing here?"

From his vantage point, Lincoln heard the conversation and was completely befuddled.

"I think the better question is what _you_ were _doin`_ here?" Lynn retorted giggling.

"That...that`s not your business..." Taylor stumbled over his words before finally gaining his composer "...I asked you first!" he demanded in a firm tone.

"Fair enough..." Lynn shrugged "...somethin` tells me it will be funnier if you tell me later in private. You see me and Lincoln were..."

"The pipsqueak is with you?" Taylor interjected. " _That chalk-haired rat saw me too?!_ "

"Okay Lynn, can you _please_ tell me what's going on?" They both turned to see the frustrated Lincoln entering trough the gate. He rushed to get out of the rain, only to yelp as he slipped on the muddy ground and splashed into a mud puddle.

Lynn gasped, but Taylor broke out with hollering laughter and clutched his head.

"Way to make an entrance dude!" he laughed at the soaked Lincoln who lifted himself up with his arms and glared up at Taylor.

"You know, is it just me or do you also feel a strong sense of déjà vu with how we first met?" Taylor snickered before realizing that Lynn was sending him a very pissed off glare.

His snickering died down and he fiddled his fingers sheepishly. "Not that I think back at it fondly or anythi-Shouldn`t we get him inside!" he quickly pointed at her brother to change the subject.

...

Taylor pulled off his mask as he led the two siblings into his home. "Welcome at the casa de Taylor, please take a seat. And don't worry, my folks and siblings are all gone for the night, we have the house for ourselves. " he exclaimed in a welcoming tone.

"To ourselves? Told you our luck would change, huh Linc?" Lynn sent her brother a triumphant smirk. He however, was more preoccupied silently cringing at the sight of the scars that were edged across Taylor`s cheek.

Lynn seated herself on the living room couch, but as the mud-soaked Lincoln tried to do the same Taylor grabbed him by the arm and yanked him back. That abrupt action made Lincoln`s blood freeze with fear.

"Wow! Not you Sludge Boy, my folks would freak out is someone got mud all over their furniture." Taylor told him in a laid-back manner.

" _Ryan_..." Lynn warned him.

"Hey, it's not my fault he took a mud bath before comin` in." Taylor defended himself. "He can't sit here like this."

"What am I supposed to do? Just stand here?" Lincoln complained while pulling his arm free.

"Hmmm...good question." an amused Taylor replied as he sat next to Lynn. He grabbed a towel that was lying on the couch and threw it at Lincoln, who barely managed to catch it.

"How about you go upstairs and take a long shower? You smell worse than a pack of wet hyenas." the black haired boy quipped only to be elbowed in the gut by Lynn.

"You know there are nicer ways to say it." the jock told him dryly.

Taylor rubbed his stomach. "What? I`m bein` perfectly hospitable. You want him to waltz around like this?" he pointed at Lincoln, who silently fumed.

Lynn still glared at him and Taylor eased back into the couch. "But anyways, you still owe me an answer, Lynn. Why were you two takin` a stroll in the rain way past your curfew?"

Lynn rolled her eyes and gave in. "I was escortin` Lincoln back home when the storm suddenly came. He was stuck in detention after gettin` into a fight..."

" _He_ got into a brawl..." Taylor asked in astonishment before he slowly diverted his gaze at Lincoln and gave him a slow clap. "Well, congratulations little man, you're growing up so fast." he complemented him and pretended to wipe away a tear of joy.

Lincoln turned away from them, looking crossed.

"Hey, don't look so sour, Linc. I told you that you should be proud of it." Lynn told him encouragingly. "You taught Chandler a lesson for always pickin` on you and Lucy."

"Chandler? You mean that weasley, ginger-haired kid?" Taylor suddenly asked her.

"You know him?" Lynn turned to him, surprised.

Taylor shrugged. "Me and Lyle may have stuffed him into a trash bin once. And another time I caught him pickin` on some rugrats with a chubby kid. Didn't like those ankle-bitters on sight so I ordered the fat one punch him in the gut. He obeyed immediately."

Holding her sides laughing, Lynn smiled and moved nearer to fist bump him. "Well Ryan, you just fell back in my good grace. That little worm has been a pain to my siblings for years."

"It was my pleasure." Taylor replied in a chill tone.

Lincoln rolled his eyes and sighed. He couldn't bare another moment of this.

"You know Lynn, I think I`ll take that shower..." he said intuitively. Anything to get away from Taylor before their dad would show up.

"You do that bro, I`ll call dad in the meantime." Lynn replied as the grouchy Lincoln walked upstairs.

"You know Lynn, your timing couldn't have been more perfect..." Taylor spoke up to get her attention. "With everyone but me away, there's nothin` stoppin` ya from stayin` here for the night."

"I was thinkin` about it, I`m just not sure if Lincoln would like the idea...or if dad would allow it."

Taylor cursed inwardly, there was always something keeping him from being alone with Lynn.

"I wouldn't worry about that, I`m sure once your bro sees his accomidations he`ll change his mind. As for Mr L..."

A loud crack of thunder interrupted them along with the sound of rain mercilessly pounding on the roof. Taylor smirked inwardly.

"I`m sure we`ll convince him _somehow_."

"I hope so. But you have to promise me that you'll be nice to Lincoln." Lynn told him with a serious look.

"Lynn, Lynn, don't worry about it, I was just jokin` before. I`ll treat him like an honorary guest..." Taylor promised with one hand on his chest.

As Lynn started to smile he looked at her hopefully. "But he does go to bed early, right?"

The jocks smile faltered and she rolled her eyes.

"Whaaaat?" I`m just makin` sure your little bro gets his eight hours of sleep. Don't want to upset your old man?" Taylor reasoned with a shrug.

" _Sure_ you do." the girl replied with a snide smirk, clearly not buying his reasons.

"Alright, you got me." Taylor admitted halfheartedly. "But be honest with me, Lynn? You don't want him hangin` around us, do ya? I mean...this is supposed to be a sleepover, not a babysittin` gig?" the boy pointed out flippantly.

"He`s my brother Ryan, I`m not gonna act like I'm embarrassed of him and don't want him around." Lynn told him clearly and seriously, before bending back and relaxing in the sofa.

"So, unless he decides to hit the hay early, you`re just gonna have to deal with his company." she told him matter of factly.

Taylor twitched and cursed inwardly. There had to be a way to get the pipsqueak out of the picture. Maybe...

"But you and me currently _are_ alone..." Lynn`s voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He turned to see her giving him an amused look. "I think you owe me an explanation of your own, _Ninja Boy_."

Taylor glanced down at the outfit he was still wearing and the mask in his hand, and sighed dejectedly.

"Why do you have to be so nosy." he moaned.

"What? You can't trust a friend a secret?" Lynn asked him humorously and held back her giggling. "I won`t laugh about your..." she snickered "...cosplay games."

"I wasn't cosplayin`!" Taylor exclaimed frustratingly. "I was..." he groaned and snapped his head up before facing Lynn.

Taylor deflated and sighed. "I...I sort of... snuck into Kathleen`s "club house" and...stole her footage of Luan." Lynn froze and looked at him wide eyed after hearing it.

"And I _may_ have stink bombed the place too." Taylor added anxiously, because why not at this point.

Lynn blinked. "You took the footage?" she suddenly spoke.

"Yup, all here." Taylor pulled out the flash drive from his pocket and showed it to Lynn.

Lynn was quiet for a moment and Taylor grew nervous. "So...?" he started awkwardly.

Without warning, the girl jumped and embraced him in a tight hug. Instantly, Taylor`s face flushed red and he started feeling lightheaded.

"Thank you Ryan, you're the best..." she thanked him warmly. Taylor struggled to think coherently as he felt butterflies in his stomach.

"I...I am...wha..eh you're not mad?" he finally spoke up clearly. Lynn moved back to face him, but didn't exactly release him.

"Mad? Why on Earth would I be mad, you numbskull?" she laughed in a jaunty tone.

Taylor felt stupefied. "But...but..." he stuttered in utter confusion "...I just told you how I broke into..."

"Meh..." Lynn shrugged "...you just snuck into some 13 year old broads hangout, I wouldn't call that breaking and entertaining. Besides, this is Kathleen Tisdale we`re talking about, she deserves to have her whole mansion robbed blind. Maybe then she`d learn some humility."

"So...you`re okay with this?" the anxious Taylor still couldn't believe it. Lynn smiled pleasantly.

"Of course I am, you saved my sister from becoming a laughing stock, I could just..." Lynn stopped herself from finishing what she thought about saying and realized how close she still was to her friend.

She released him and scutted away. She faced away from him.

"...I...I...just don't know how to thank you..." she kept on talking, hoping it would prevent him from seeing her blushing bashfully.

Hearing this, Taylor managed to regain his chill composer. "It was no big deal Lynn, anything for you." he replied with surprisingly humility.

The jock likewise relaxed and looked at him. She felt flattered by his comment, but she wouldn't let him of the hook that easily, albeit for an entirely different reason.

"There's just one thing I'm peeved about." she told him with her hands on her hips. "That you didn't ask me to come along!"

"Huh?" Taylor blinked with bemusement.

"You heard me.." Lynn said boldly "...I`d have done anythin` to personally give Kathleen some payback and watch her stupid face when she got stink bombed."

Taylor was at a loss of words, that was certainly not the reaction he had anticipated. He must have started to influence his friend about using underhanded tactics. Either way he liked seeing Lynn`s devious side.

"Well...I thought you would be busy, plus..." a smirk of superiority suddenly spread across his face "...I was worried this would have been too much for you."

Lynn huffed arrogantly. "Oh _please_ , I have singlehandedly tackled some of the most difficult sports imaginable. This would have been a walk in the park." she bragged with her arms crossed.

Taylor raised his eyebrow in a cocky "oh _really_ " manner.

"I`ll show you." she answered his silent challenge. She untied her hair and grabbed the mask from his hand, and pulled it over her face. She started walking backwards while striking classic ninja poses.

"Now you see me..." she then jumped behind the sofa. Taylor stood up to look ahead.

"And now you don't!" Jolting and turning around, Taylor saw her hidding behind the vase holding a tall plant.

He gave her a reluctant smile. "Nice move, not too shabby..." he complimented her "...for an amateur that is." he added smarmily .

The masked girl crossed her arms with a snide look in her eyes. "Oh, so you`ve done this stunt before?"

Taylor smiled devilishly. "There's much you still don't know about me..."

 **Well, I had to work until four and a half in the morning to finish this, but at least, I got to post this damn sucker. Now the plot can get rolling, and as the summary implies, Taylor`s gonna try to have his crush over for a sleepover, but unfortunately for him, her little brother (who he isn't very fond of, and vice versa) tagged along. And soon enough, the rest of her family will invite themselves in, Luan (who wants to be Lynn`s wingwoman), Lana (who really likes Taylor) and Lucy (who worries about Lincoln`s safety), Lisa might stay home to watch over her soon-to-be plastered father. Hijinks will ensue. XD**

 **And as, I mentioned before, a large part of this chapter was inspired by Lynn`s very brief stint as a ninja in Insta-Gran, because the ninja routine was a lot more of an entertaining option for stealing Kathleen`s footage than, as Taylor himself put it, grab Kathleen`s camera and push her into the school fountain, and then watch her bitch and moan about her ruined hair and make up. Which was my original idea, prior to seeing Insta-Gran.**

 **And I wanted to reveal Lyle`s anonymous accomplice here, but that part got shoved away by all the other sub-plots, so I pushed it back for the next chapter. Till next time...**


	6. Sudden Sleepover

**Four weeks later and the grand sleepover is starting to unfold XD**

At the Loud apartment, Lynn Sr. was sitting at the kitchen table. Lucy was sitting in front of him, with Luan, Lana and Lisa by her side.

The man had just finished sipping down a glass of wine. In the past, he would have usually avoided alcoholic beverages, but ever since his divorce he was forced to find some means to numb the stress that would trail him on a nearly weekly basis. But what he had learned today was far worse than overly long business hours.

First, he got a call during the middle of work from Principle Huggins, informing him that his son had gotten into a fight. Of course, he wasn't in a position to come to the principles office like he had been asked to, so he had to wait and confront his son about it back home.

Though knowing his son and knowing who he had fought with made him quite sure that Lincoln hadn't started the fight, or that he must have had a very good reason for snapping at Chandler.

Lynn wasn't sure if his son should face some sort of disciplinary retribution, but that debate quickly took a back seat in his mind upon learning what had made his son get into a fight in the first place, which involved Lucy.

But on top of this, was the harrowing experience his oldest daughter had experienced on that same day. Lynn has had his share of experiences being the butt of pranks when he was a teen, but he never heard of something this intense and frankly dangerous being passed off as a teen prank.

It was heart-breaking for him to hear from Luan how no one would stand up for her and that they would all likely help Kathleen try to manipulate things in order for her to come clear, should Luan and her father try to bring this up to the principal, making it pretty much a kangaroo court in terms of getting anything accomplished.

Lynn highly doubted he could ever manage to contact Kathleen`s father, who would probably be too busy to ever pick up his call or even care about it to begin with.

All the stress forced him to take another glass of wine, just so he could keep his composer.

All he could do is comfort his teen daughter before going over to comfort Lucy. Timid and withdrawn as usual, Lucy explained in full detail what had happened to her.

"...and so Lincoln came to help me. Everyone was laughing and pointing at me." Lucy struggled not to tear up as she recollected that.

"It okay sweetie...there`s no rush." her father told her reassuringly.

Lucy sniffed and continued. "He...tried to lead me away, but...Chandler kept mocking him, laughing at him, trying to provoke him into a fight. Lincoln said he wouldn't do it. Chandler called him a chicken, but Lincoln ignored him and tried to get me out of there."

Lucy bit her lip, before taking in a deep breath. It wasn't easy lying to her father, but she knew she had to do it. "I`m...not sure what happened, but...Chandler got angry...I guess he was angry that Lincoln wouldn't take up his challenge, so...while Lincoln`s back was turned, he grabbed a big stick and charged at Lincoln. I saw it and warned him. Lincoln turned around in time, grabbed the stick and pushed Chandler off him, and...that`s how the fight started..." she finished with a deep sigh.

The girls didn't know how their dad would react to this. But much to their joy, he believed it and wasn't angry at his son.

"So...you won't punish him?" Lucy asked him meekly, feeling a small spot of hope.

"Of course not sweetie. What happened was outside of your Lincoln`s control, not to mention it happened while he was being a good and dutiful big brother by protecting you." their father reassured them sympathetically.

The four sisters all felt a collective wave of relief and quickly exchanged happy glances while their father continued talking.

"It truly pains me to hear how all of you went trough a lot of grief today, and you all deserve some well earned downtime for the weekend."

"Well, all of this has been very urgent and touching to discuss..." Lisa suddenly chimed in "...but it`s high time that we finally address my own personal grievance."

Their father sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Lisa, sweetie, I`ve told you already. That's the law, we can't alter the legal system in order to suit the needs of one, one _very special_ , but still just one child. I know it must feel unfair to you, but there`s nothing we can do about it." he explained to Lisa as sympathetically and reasonably as he could.

Lisa was flabbergasted. Luan placed her hand on the toddler`s shoulder. "I`m sorry sis, but dad`s right. Child labor laws exist for a very good reason, they ensure that children can enjoy their childhood without worrying about being hurt and mistreated." she tried to explain it to the little genius.

"Enjoy my childhood? It's because of this "law" that I can`t enjoy it, by being restricted from achieving my full potential!" Lisa ranted. "With what am I supposed to preoccupy myself for the ensuing 14 years ?! Just sit at home and fester while viewing mediocre day time television!"

"Well Lisa, I`m afraid there's only one solution." her father spoke up. The toddler looked at him, already dreading what he was going to say.

"You're gonna have to go back to kindergarten and go trough school at a regular pace. I know this will seem tedious and pointless to you, but it's the only thing we can do at the moment." her father explained to her gently. His gaze then hardened a bit.

"I`m most certainly not gonna allows you to stay at home all alone and risk getting our apartment blown up as well." he added with a more stern tone.

Lisa looked aside, signs of shame glossing over her features, before facing her father again.

"But...but...but...but...but! I cannot go to kindergarten. Me and that facility are completely incompatible! There must be an alternative we can take?! I beseech you, our dear patriarchs, you must think of an alternative."Lisa begged while sweating with anxiety.

"I`m afraid there's just isn't one." her father replied plainly. Lisa gazed down, looking crossed.

Her father sighed. "I`m sorry Lisa, but there`s really nothing we can do, unless we could, I don't know, age you up over night." he said jokingly, the alcohol slowly getting to him.

Lisa looked up with intrigue.

"But no one has ever found the legendary Fountain of Youth, let alone a Fountain of Aging." he joked. But unfortunately, the toddler genius didn't quite catch his sarcasm.

"No, all scientific data proves without a shadow of ambiguity that this piece of lore is nothing but a pigment of ones fanciful imagination." Lisa mused thoughtfully.

"But perhaps, by using the forces of science, I could devise a way to artificially accelerate my own aging?" she rubbed her chin while pondering.

Her fathers amused look dropped. " _Great job Lynn, you just gave her a stupid, stupid idea_." he mentally kicked himself.

"Lisa, I`m afraid that's impossible. No scientist, no matter how smart they are, can alter the laws of nature." he explained to her, but Lisa has already snatched a pencil and a clipboard.

"Perhaps, but as the antiquated proverb phrases it "There's a first for everything"..." she stated in her usual monotonous voice while being immersed in her own thoughts. Writting something down, she walked away towards her room.

"Now if you could pardon me, I`m going to request for some privacy while I'm preoccupied with a tremendous cerebral cyclone." With that she closed the door.

Lynn rubbed his temples. " _That went well_." he thought sarcastically.

Well, at least he wouldn't have to listen to her throwing a tantrum. His attention drifted towards Lucy and Luan, knowing they had something else that they needed to get of their chests.

Lynn turned towards Lana. "Lana, isn't that cartoon about frogs on right now? How about you go watch it? I need to have a private moment with your sisters." he told her, while his eyes fell towards the goth and the comedian.

"Okay daddy!" Lana obeyed happily and darted towards the living room.

"You want to talk to me and Lucy?" Luan asked nervously.

Their tired father yawned. "Don't be afraid girls, you're not in any trouble. I want to talk about your homeschooling proposition."

Both sisters blinked in surprise. "You...knew that were talking about it?" Lucy asked.

Their father gave a knowing smile. "Sure I did, I may not be the youngest person around, but I`m not oblivious."

Another yawn came up, making him realize how tired he was, and he was starting to worry if he took one too many drinks.

"Listen girls I`m really exchausted and I need to lie down for a bit, so I want to discuss this quickly." The 13 year old and the 7 year old both listened anxiously.

"Now I too have been thinking about this for a while, and I was admittedly on the fence about it for some time, but after what happened to both of you today, I frankly feel terrible for being this indecisive for so long." their father admitted.

He had tried to reason against it by looking at the positives and negatives of his two daughters attending public school. But after hearing about todays events, he came to realize that the few positives he could think of were downright insignificant.

"So you wanna let us...? Luan asked hopefully. Her father nodded sympathetically.

"I think we can arrange that, and I do think that would be the best for you two, for the foreseeable future at least."

In a millisecond, he was nearly knocked off his chair when both of his daughters tackled and hugged him exuberantly.

"Thank you daddy! Thank you! We love you!" Luan exclaimed happily, while Lucy remained silent and let out a tear of joy.

"Wow, that's great girls, just don't crush me." Lynn gasped.

"Uhh, sorry dad." Luan apologized as they both let him go.

Their father straightened himself up and gave his daughters a warm smile. But then he pointed his index finger up. "But remember girls, this is still school. You're only allowed this privilege on the condition that you take it as seriously as real school, meaning I don't want to see you using this as an excuse to slack off." he explained to them in a more stern manner.

Lucy and Luan nodded knowingly. "Don't worry dad, we would never. School is school, remember that Lucy." Luan said while looking down at her little sister.

"I wasn't talking about Lucy." their father spoke up with a hint of amusement.

Luan blushed with embarrassment and gulped. "Oh...yeah...sure...crystal clear...understood dad." she replied sheepishly.

Her father gave her another knowing smile, but then, their attention was diverted by a crack of thunder. Lynn Sr. looked out of the window and saw the heavy rain.

"Just where in the world are Lynn and Lincoln? They should have been back by now, and it's getting dark." the man asked in concern.

Luan joined him."Don`t worry dad, I`m sure they're just hidding out from the weather." she reassured him.

"I hope so..." he replied with a worried expression.

"You should try calling them." Lucy quickly suggested.

"Good idea sweetie." her father replied.

...

Lynn was leaning against the window frame, watching the rain pour.

"Care for some hot chocolate?" She turned to see Taylor, who had changed back into his regular clothing, approaching her, holding two cups.

"Sure.." she happily accepted and took her first sip. "So...ya were talkin` about your second encounter with Chandler?" she inquired, eager to hear the rest of the story.

The boy smirked, pretending to ponder."Yeah...where did I left off? Hmmm...ah yes!"

He cleared his throat. "And so, the moment he saw me, the little ginger-haired maggot was practically on his knees, beggin` for mercy."

Placing his cup on the frame, Taylor clasped his hands together and adopted the most high-pitched, whiny voice he could produce to immitate Chandler. " _Oh please spare me! I promise, I`ll be good and I`ll never enter your turf without permission again!_ "

Carefully putting her cup down so she wouldn't spill it, Lynn was splitting her sides laughing. Taylor leaned back and took on a calmer demeanor. He always greatly enjoyed it when he could make her laugh.

"And I was like : _Don't worry, I`m feelin` generous today, so I won't hurt you_." He then looked at Lynn devilishly. "And just when I saw him getting a relieved look I went- _Yo fattso! Punch him in the gut!_ "

"And two seconds latter, the kid was keelin` on the ground in agony."

"You really have a cruel sense of humor, Ryan. But.." Lynn paused and made a mischievous smile "...can`t say that I don't approve it in this instance."

"I always did say : what some people call a worthless bully, is an avenger of justice for others." the boy proclaimed proudly.

Rolling her eyes, Lynn gave him a light push. "Shut up, you never said that!" she retorted in a playfully mocking tone.

"Okay I didn't, but it sure sounds neat." Taylor admitted shrugging his shoulders.

A crack of thunder diverted their attention. Lynn looked back out of the window and let out a long exhale. She seemed to be lost in her thoughts and Taylor took a moment to admire her. It wasn't often that he saw her with her flowing, brown hair down and the boy thought that she looked even prettier that way.

"Well, I better call dad now." she thought out loud, jolting Taylor out of his enamored trance.

He leaned next to her. "Ah yes, him. So what's the plan? You gonna call him, tell him your at a friends house and then the storm will _conveniently disconnect your call_." he suggested, nudging her shoulder.

She sent him a disapproving look. "You want me to lie to my dad?"

"So? You`ve already lied to him once today, another little white lie won't hurt anyone." Taylor shrugged nonchalantly.

"That was different, we only did it for Lincoln. He deserved to get some slack." she argued.

"Right you are. And you two deserve to spend some time away from that claustrophobic closet you call home, and Mr.L sure deserves to get some much needed rest instead of goin` for a late night drive in stormy weather."

Lynn rolled her eyes again. Taylor sure had a way of twisting things in a way that made whatever suggestion he made sound justified. Though she would be lying to herself if she didn't admit to feeling tempted to go trough with it.

She shook those thoughts away. "Sorry Ryan, but I won't do it."

Disappointed, Taylor chugged his hot chocolate down before giving Lynn a exasperatedly sad look.

"Don't be such a daddy`s girl Lynn. Lies are the thread that keeps society together. We're only playin` by the rules." he tried to convince her otherwise, only to notice that she wasn't paying attention to him anymore and was looking up the stairs.

"Ryan, could you check on Lincoln, while I call dad? He's been up there for a while, and maybe find him somethin` to wear?" the girl asked him.

Taylor groaned inwardly. It wasn't his duty to play nanny to the pipsqueak. But then again, he thought, he could use this chance to get Lincoln out of the picture for the night, and he had a good idea as to how to do it, and return in time to try and help Lynn convince her stick-in-the-mud father to let her stay.

"Alright, I`ll check on the little guy." he obliged. Lynn gave him a thankful smile as he went upstairs, before suddenly halting and looking back at her.

"You know, stop me if I`ve told you this before, but you should let your hair down more often, it looks good on you ."

Lynn froze in surprise, feeling flustered again. "Eh...I think you...eh...did.." she stumbled over her words.

"...Eh...do you really mean it? she suddenly asked, a little too quickly and eagerly. On the inside she felt rather anxious to hear his response.

Taylor shrugged his shoulders."Sure I do, I mean as your friend I think you can trust me when I complement you on somethin`."

"Well thanks...I...eh like to keep it tied up though...it`s more practical when...you know, I do sports and stuff." she replied awkwardly while twirling her hair. Taylor shrugged.

"Makes perfect sense, but when you're not on the field you could let it down sometimes, just a suggestion." With that he darted upstairs.

" _Nailed it_." he congratulated himself for staying cool while complementing her. He was getting somewhere.

Lynn was left feeling confused and embarrassed.

Why did she get all stiff and nervous right there? He just gave her a small, friendly compliment and she reacted like an idiot over it. Though she was glad that Taylor seemingly didn't notice her bashful reaction.

Now alone, Lynn, still feeling her heart pounding, tried to forget about the awkward moment and find the house phone. Though deep down, she felt strangely joyous that she got her friend to notice her the way he did.

...

Within the steam filled shower corner, Lincoln turned the water handle off and carefully moved the glass door open. The steam spread trough the bathroom, as the boy stepped off the shower base and immediately grabbed a large towel and wrapped it around his waist.

He had already locked the door, so he didn't really need to fear being caught naked, but Lincoln was never the kind of person who felt comfortable unwinding at a stranger`s house, and especially in this stranger`s house.

After a rough day, the long, hot shower was honestly quiet relaxing. But once that was over, Lincoln once again got goose bumps and felt anxious and uneasy. The bathroom was actually quite neat, very spacious and clean, but it being Ryan Taylor`s property made any feeling of security or ease fade away.

Sighing, Lincoln went to the sink to splash some cool water into his face to help ease his nerves, but as he looked down he saw his dirty clothes, which he had thrown into the laundry basket.

It made him realize that he had nothing to wear, while being far away from home. Lincoln grew increasingly nervous, when a sudden knock on the door made his heart skip a beat. Something told him that wasn't Lynn.

"If you're done addin` an extra zero to my water bill, could you kindly follow me so I can show you your accommodations?" Taylor snidely shouted as he learned against the wall with his arm, impatiently tapping his fingers. He was holding a plain white t-shirt and pajama pants in his other arm.

He heard no response and rolled his eyes in irritation. "Don't worry, you won't be goin` commando, I brought you somethin` to wear." he reassured him condescendingly. "Now if you would just unlock the door?"

Lincoln gulped and hesitated. He could tell from Taylor`s tone that the latter wasn't in a patient mood, and staying here in nothing but a bath towel wouldn't do him any good either.

Gulping, Lincoln unlocked the door, and almost immediately, it was nudged open and Taylor`s arm extended in.

"Took you long enough! Here!" he groaned and tossed the clothes into Lincoln`s face before shutting the door.

"And throw your dirty rags in the washer!" he shouted behind the closed door.

The moment they hit his head, Lincoln`s face cringed with disgust as a fowl odor assaulted his sense of smell and started suffocating him.

Peeling them off his head, Lincoln coughed and gagged before looking at the clothes he was handed. They were a few sizes too large for him and they smelled like they had been dipped in a pool of sweat mixed with grease.

Lincoln scowled, it was no mystery who they belonged to.

"Will ya hurry it up! I don't got all night!" Lincoln winced at Taylor`s annoyed shout and whimpered. He had to wear this. Sucking in a deep breath, he pulled the shirt on...

...

With the baggy, oversized shirt hanging off his small frame and having to hold the pants up with one hand so they wouldn't fall down, Lincoln staggered out of the bathroom and found himself in the dimly-lit corridor. His gaze shifted to the right where he saw the stairs leading towards the more brightly-lit lower floor, where he had last seen Lynn.

" _Hello, pipsqueak._ "

The 10 year old jolted, nearly letting his pants drop, and turned to his left abruptly to see Taylor leaning his back against the wall, arms crossed and wearing a subtle smirk on his face.

As he started walking towards him, Lincoln felt increasingly more nervous and vulnerable.

The lighting only helped to make Taylors ghoulish complexion look even more unsettling as he loomed over Lincoln. His nervous disposition didn't go unnoticed by the older boy.

"What`s the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Taylor joked, still keeping his smug look, as he looked at the shrinking Loud boy, waiting for him to say something in reply.

Eventually, after a prolonged silence, Taylor started waving his hand in front of his face.

"Yoho...anybody up there?" he said in a sing-song voice.

Scowling, Lincoln took a step back, almost tripping on the leg of his baggy pants, and finally found his voice.

"Where`s Lynn?" he asked promptly.

"Why she's down there..." Taylor casually pointed at the stairs "...callin` your pops to tell him you guys are alright. And she asked me to show you your room for the night."

Lincoln raised his eyebrows uneasily, his pupils growing as he felt a chill run down his back.

"I...I won't need that, dad will come to pick us up." he stuttered defiantly , maybe more so to convince himself than to deny his host`s gesture.

"I think you will." Taylor replied nonchalantly. "I don't think Mr.L can pick you guys up with this storm goin` about."

"S..Sure he can." Lincoln said meekly, trying to stand tall while still holding his pants up. "It`s just rain..."

A powerful crack thunder cut him off, it was so loud that it shook him to his core and made the startled boy cower. Even Taylor was caught off guard by it, but he quickly regained his composure.

"I think the weather is disagreein` with ya." he snarked snidely.

Lincoln silently clenched his fist as he scowled at Taylor. But then, Taylor unexpectedly wrapped his arm around Lincoln and pulled him closer. Lincoln grew tense with fear as he came too close for comfort to Taylor`s pale, scarred face.

"But not to worry..." Taylor exclaimed exuberantly while giving Lincoln a pat on the chest, to Lincoln it felt more like getting struck by a wrecking ball, "...I made sure that my best friend`s little bro will feel at home!"

Lincoln felt shivers as Taylor flashed him a toothy and frankly sinister grin, showing his crooked, yellow-ish teeth which, combined with his piercing, bloodshot eyes and sickly complexion, made him look like a slasher about to do his work.

"Now why don't I show you your guest room."

Lincoln shuddered, he didn't know if it was his imagination playing tricks on him, but he thought he saw a disturbing glint in the latter`s eyes and it sounded like Taylor`s voice dropped to an eerily low and calm tone when he said that.

He gestured to Lincoln to follow him trough the dark corridor, the flashes of lighting emanating from the window only made the scene look even more spooky.

Lincoln tried to compose himself.

" _Don`t be a baby Lincoln, that jerk is just trying to scare you, he`s nothing but a blowhard_." Lincoln told himself as he mustered up his courage and followed. Taylor had his back turned and didn't say a word, so Lincoln spoke up.

"So...why were you dressed up as a ninja?" he asked the first thing that came to mind, trying to deflate the one-sided tension. He heard Taylor scoff.

"That`s a little secret between friends, only for me and Lynn to know and not for any pesky little brothers to learn." he replied smugly, not caring to look at Lincoln, who grew more annoyed by his attitude.

" _He was totally cosplaying_." Lincoln told himself, trying to find a way to look at Taylor in a pitiful light, only to remember that he does the same thing on a regular basis as Ace Savy and immediately felt dumb.

"Ah, here we are." Taylor gestured to a room at the end of the corridor. He grabbed Lincoln by the shoulder and rather forcefully pushed him in. "Don`t be shy! Make yourself at home!" he laughed.

Lincoln was shoved into total darkness, until Taylor turned the lights on, revealing a very standard looking prepubescent boy`s room. Lincoln looked around when Taylor approached him.

"In case you're wonderin`, this is my own little brother`s room, who is currently havin` his own sleepover, and since you two are the same age I assumed this room would be _taylor_ made for you." he snickered at his own joke.

Lincoln rolled his eyes, that pun would have made Luan proud.

He frowned skeptically. "Are you sure he`ll be okay with me staying here?" he asked uncomfortably.

He certainly wasn't fond of the idea of some stranger using and probing around his former room (or closet) while he was away, and he was no hypocrite on that principal.

Taylor shrugged in disinterest. "Meh, I don't know"...he then elbowed Lincoln in his ribs "...but it doesn't matter. Between you and me, Roy`s a huge pansy, so I wouldn't worry about any angry retribution." he whispered with a wink.

"Eh...good to know..." Lincoln replied flatly. " _Good to know that you don't think too highly of even your own family._ " he thought resentfully.

Suddenly, Taylor grabbed him by both shoulders and led him, or rather shoved him, to sit in the bed.

"Now, being the kind host I am, I won't bother you any longer. Just need to show you a few things." Taylor stated quickly.

Before Lincoln could get a word in Taylor pointed at a tv set. "If you get bored feel free to watch some tv, or..." he gestured towards a shelf holding two stacks of comics above and a stack of DVDs on the third platform "...you can pop in a movie or read a comic, they're all Ace Savy comics by the way."

Taylor rubbed his chin thoughtfully with a whimsical look. "If memory serves you're a big fan of that stuff, it was the very first thing I ever learned about ya."

"Yeah, when you tripped me and made me loose the latest issue..." Lincoln muttered sarcastically.

"Yes, first impressions are always the funniest." Taylor joked, Lincoln twitched and clenched his teeth behind a closed mouth.

"Life is funny that way. You get into a brawl with some random stranger, fast foward two months and they're your closest friend." he started reminiscing.

"Yeah, hilarious..." Lincoln muttered cross-armed.

"Yeah, in hindsight I kinda wish we had met under better circumstances..." Taylor mused, not really paying attention to Lincoln, "...you know, that didn't involve lots of painful punches or...well _wolves_. But in the end, it was worth it gettin` to meet a great gal like Lynn."

Lincoln silently rolled his eyes.

"Well that was all, nighty night!" Taylor was ready to leave, but Lincoln suddenly spoke up.

"Wait!" Taylor grinded in his tracks and his face twisted in irritation. "What are you and Lynn gonna do?" the younger boy asked him suspiciously.

Keeping his back turned, Taylor smiled arrogantly. "Oh nothing special, eat popcorn, maybe watch a horror movie, stay up late, you know... _big kids stuff_. We didn't plan anything so we'll just improvise."

Lincoln`s eyes narrowed as Taylor grabbed the door handle. "Hope you'll cherish the memory of stayin` at my place for a life time, bla bla bla, yadda yadda-goodnight!"

He was ready to go, but then suddenly halted and gave the younger boy a side glance. "And no readin` comics in your undies! That's not good etiquette for a house guests!"

Lincoln was ready to snap as he heard Taylor barely holding back his urge to snicker.

And with that he closed the door, leaving Lincoln alone to fume.

He slammed both fists into the mattress. " _That smug, stinking, sleazy, slimy, self-entitled scumbag! He might as well have just said : You better stay here if you know what's good for you while I cuddle and smooch your sister! What I would do to punch that insufferable smirk off his ugly face!_ " he raged inwardly, before doing some breathing exercises to calm himself.

He rubbed his temples. " _Relax Lincoln, you`re making a mountain out of a mole hill. Like he said, Lynn is calling dad now, once he hears about where we are he`ll come here to pick us up in a heart beat! He`s probably already on his way_."

He snickered " _And it will all be worth it to see Taylor`s face when his date night plans crumble apart._ "

Feeling more at ease, he looked around the room and saw the stack of comics and sighed. " _Well, might as well have some fun killing time_."

But before he could go to pick out an issue, the appalling odor of his clothes caught his attention again. He recalled seeing an air freshener and some body spray in the bathroom. Lincoln huffed smugly.

" _Taylor did tell me to make myself at home_." he thought sarcastically as he peeked out of the room and made his way back to the bathroom, still having to hold his pants up.

...

At the Louds apartment, Lisa was lying on her belly in Lucy`s top bunk, writting on her clipboard while wearing earmuffs to cancel out any noise.

Lucy, meanwhile, was sitting on the youngest sister`s bottom bunk, gently caressing a bird cage where Fang was currently held. The bat was climbing all over the bars, chirping loudly, as if pleading to her to let him out.

With a saddened look the goth whispered to him. " _I`m sorry Fang, but I can't have you flying around with dad being here. Please...just stay quiet_."

"Lucy? Do you think they're alright?" she heard Lana`s concerned voice. The tomboy had been preoccupied walking in circles in their room.

"Sigh, I don't know Lana..." the goth answered honestly. They tried calling them, and it didn't take long to learn that their brother`s phone was with them, and Lynn's was dead. Lucy felt agitated by this, she thought her meat-headed sister would take a little more priority with charging her phone now, considering what happened last time she didn't, but apparently this wasn't the case.

Looking back at the worried Lana, she placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "...but I`m sure they are. They probably just took shelter from the storm somewhere."

Lana gave a small smile, but then they heard their fathers frustrated yell from the living room. They looked at each other uneasily.

"Dad please, calm down..." Luan tried to calm her father as she placed her hand on his arm while he was clutching and shaking the phone.

"Lynn`s phone is dead, calling her a fourth time won't change that." she explained to him, as he carelessly left the handset lying on the table before pinching the bridge of his nose. The teen made sure to put it back in place.

"What was that foolish girl thinkin`..." he grumbled with a slight slur "...you`d think she learned her damn lesson after last monthz..." his voice trailed off and he just uttered a miserable growl.

Luan tugged his arm. "Dad, there's no need to get upset, they're probably just taking shelter in some store, or maybe at a friend`s house." she tried to reassure him.

"Ughh...but...how can I know for sure?" he muttered dejectedly.

"Come on, you should sit down." she led her father to the couch. He sat down and slouched, burying his face in his hands. Luan patted him on the back.

"Don`t worry dad, I`m sure they'll be calling us any moment now." Luan tried to lift his spirit as she sat next to him.

"Have you heard anythin` from Lincoln and Lynn." Lana came in to check on them and tugged Luan`s skirt.

Upon hearing her question, their father snivelled. Luan hoisted her little sister up next to her.

"I`m afraid not, but don't worry, they're probably just taking shelter in some store, or maybe at a friends house." she tried to smile reassuringly. Lana looked over and pointed at their father.

"Is dad alright? Is he cryin`?" the little tomboy asked worryingly.

Luan looked at him as well. They both heard him mumble something underneath his breath, but it was too muffled and faint to make out. Luan was starting to worry if her dad had taken one too many shoots.

" _Lana, I think, maybe, we should get dad to lie down and take some rest_." she whispered to her sister.

" _Wut? Why?_ " Lana asked.

Luan paused, bitting her lip. She had no idea how to explain this to the 5 year old. " _Well...I think he got a little_..." she struggled to think of the right word "... _eh...plastered_."

Lana squinted an eye in confusion. " _Huuuh? But...he`s not...covered in cement?_ "

Luan mentally facepalmed. Behind them, their father erected himself and let out a long exhale, which got interrupted by a sudden hiccup.

Right then, the house phone rang. They all looked over their shoulders, but it was Lana who rushed towards it.

"I`ll get it!" she exclaimed and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

" _Lana?_ " Lynn laughed cheerfully on the other end of the line. " _Hey, it's me!"_

Lana immediately smiled ear to ear. "Guys, it's Lynn!" the little tomboy beamed and happily informed the others while pressing the phone against her ear.

Their father got up and stumbled awkwardly towards her, Luan followed him, worried that he might trip. Lucy had also heard Lana and rushed out.

" _How are ya, squirt? I hope me and Linc didn't cause you guys too much grief_." the jock joked cheekily, though she was rather nervous to hear from her dad.

"Of course not sis, where are you two anyway?" Lana replied before feeling Lucy tugging her arm.

"Is Lincoln alright?" the goth asked worriedly. Lana smiled reassuringly.

"Don`t worry Luce, I was about to ask her that."

"Lana, can you pleaz hand me de phone?" he father cut in.

Lana pouted defiantly . "But dad...I want to talk to them and Lucy wants to hear from Lincoln..."

He grew more irritated, normally he would have tried gently talking her into listening to him, but right now he wasn't exactly in the best state of mind.

"I said, can ya pleaz give me dat!" he slurred in a demanding tone and gruffly grabbed the phone from her hand, much to the girl`s shock.

Not noticing Lana`s saddened expression, he struggled a bit to place handset next to his ear.

Noticing Lana`s look, Luan was quick to step in.

"Guys...family...no need to fight over the phone. I`ll just turn on the _loud_ speaker..." and so she did before winking at her sisters. "Get it?" she giggled, but Lucy and Lana just gave her confused looks.

Her face dropped into a dejected scowl and she turned towards her father, explaining to him that he didn't need to use the handset now.

"Oh...yeah...right!" he slurred awkwardly.

...

" _Hello...Lynn?_ " Lynn gulped as she heard her father`s voice and took a deep breath. "Hey dad.." she answered nervously "...we`re sorry we..."

" _What de hell were yu doing young lady! You had uz all worried sick!_ " The girls were all shocked by his outburst, including Lynn. She had expected him to be upset, but not to outright yell at her.

"I`m sorry it was just..."

" _Just what?! Can`t ya ever remember to charge yur godforsaken phone!_ "

Her eyes narrowed, true to her nature she wasn't gonna take being unfairly yelled at lying down.

"Well excuse me for comin` to escort Lincoln to make sure he got home safely, how was I supposed to know about this out of the blue storm?" she retorted assertively.

" _Don`t ya mouth off to me missy! I have enough strez already without yu adding more!_ "

" _Okay dad that's enough!_ " she heard Luan intervening. " _Lynn, please don't mind dad, he had a few shoots. Where are you?_ " she asked quickly.

"What?" Lynn blurted with a confused face. Did Luan say their dad was drunk?

" _What? I`m not dwunk. What in de world gave you dat idea?_ " their father lamented and Lynn noticed his slur.

" _Hey Lynn, where's Lincoln?_ " Lana joined in, talking over their father.

" _I`m pewfectly sob-HICCUP-ugh...eh...sober!_ "

Lynn groaned in disbelief, her dad was wasted and they were all on loud speaker, could this get any worse? She decided to just jump to the point.

"Ughh...guys, me and Linc are okay, we`re stayin` at a friends house till the storm passes."

Her family all felt a collective wave of relief, even their father managed to relax upon learning this. But he wasn't done questioning he.

" _And ho might dat friend be? Mawgo? Ruzty? Zach? Polly?_..." he asked. Lynn grew nervous and scratched her neck.

"No..." she chuckled awkwardly"...it`s...em...Ryan." she answered weakly.

" _Wyan? hoz Wyan?_ " he asked in a bemused tone. Lynn`s sisters, however, looked at each other with realization. Lana smiled, Luan felt giddy, but Lucy frowned in disbelief. Her brother was staying at _Taylor`s house_?!

" _Eh...Ryan Taylor_." came Lynn's uneasy response.

It took a few seconds for him to register the information, but then her fathers eyes widened in horror. " _What?_ " he blurted out in shock.

" _Yeah...and I was wonderin` if me and Linc could stay here for the night...you know, given the circumstances_." she asked for his permission uneasily.

Feeling more dizzy, he shook his head and rubbed his hand against his forehead. " _Taylow?...yurr...with him_..." he stumbled incomprehensibly "... _do his pawents gnow about dis_?"

Lynn gulped. She had really hoped he wouldn't ask this. She knew this could very well make or break the deal. She considered fibbing, but ultimately her conscience won over.

"Well...actually..." she stammered "...his family is away for the night, it's just me, Linc and him...and his cat." she laughed nervously.

...

Her father starred at the phone slack-jawed.

Luan giggled before raising an eyebrow "Lynn, Lynn, you sly little minks, want to bunk with Ryan for the night? All alone in one big, empty house? How romantic! I definitely approve of the idea" she exclaimed teasingly.

She could pretty much see her sister blushing and shaking with rage. " _Luan! I told you it's not like that, you idiot! He`s my friend!_ " Lynn raged.

" _Sure_...and you choose to shelter in his house out of all your buddies for...what reason?" Luan kept teasing her.

She could hear Lynn growling. " _His was the closest house we could find on short notice!_ " Lynn retorted defensively.

"Enough!" their father finally cut in. "Lynn! Yu and Lincoln wait for me, I`ll be dere quick." he slurred.

Lynn blinked and made a subdued gasp, looking absolutely crushed. Luan`s stupid little teasing hit the nail the coffin.

" _But dad, can't we just stay here for a sleepover, I was gonna visit Ryan tomorrow anyway._ " she tried to reason.

"I don't see the problem with that." Luan tried to aid her sister. "Sleepovers are lots of fun, plus I don't think you`re in the right condition to drive, dad."

"No, no way. And I'm pewfectly fine too dwive!" he slurred angrily.

...

Lynn heard the two arguing when Taylor approaching her. " I showed Lincoln his room and burrowed him a pijama, how are things with your pops?"

Lynn sighed and covered the handset with her palm. "Not good, dad`s not taking the news so well, plus he`s..."

"Say no more, I`ll have a word with him." the boy said confidently and pressed the loud speaker.

"No!" Lynn tried to warn him, but it was too late. "... _Luan, I`m youw fadder and I haw de final...ugh...wowd!_ "

"Why good evenin`, Mr.L. I hope you had a nice day." Taylor addressed him politely.

" _You?!_ " they heard the man utter the word venomously. Lynn facepalmed.

"Yes, little ol`me, now I was wonderin`...

" _Ryan! It's you! Gosh I missed ya so much! How are you! Are you well again! When are ya gonna visit!_ " Lana`s chipper voice interrupted him. Though Taylor wasn't annoyed by this, hearing Lana again felt strangely pleasant to him.

"Hey there squirt! Long time no see?" he greeted her in a friendly tone, while side glancing at Lynn. " _Psss...what was her name again?_ " he whispered to her.

Lynn held her head in annoyance.

Lana smiled excitedly and started jumping up and down. "Yeah, I really missed ya! Are you still grounded?"

...

Giggling, Luan joined in. "Ryan you lucky sneak, you and Lynn are stuck together during a storm? Hope Linky will give you two some privacy."

...

Taylor rolled his eyes, while Lynn glared daggers at the phone. "Hello Funny Girl, feel better after your little accident?" he asked halfheartedly.

...

Luan went silent and looked aside somberly.

But she didn't get to respond as their father interjected.

"Listen up you!" he growled sternly.

" _Ah, Mr.L I was just gonna_..."

"Don`t ya Mr.L me you diswespectful hoodlum! If you even fink about trwing anythin` with my wittle girl I`ll straighten doze mangled teeth of yourz with my fist! Got it, punk!"

Luan, Lana and Lucy were all shocked by his outburst.

...

Taylor was taken aback, he wasn't expecting a friendly greeting, but even he didn't expect to be met with threats of violence. Meanwhile, Lynn was blushing from a mixture of anger and embarrassment.

"Dad!" she yelled sharply ."How could you? You have no right to talk to him that way!" she snapped at him.

" _Yez I can talk to dat no-good delinquent however I wish and I`ve wa..wned yu about back talkin` young lady_!"

Lynn became fed-up. Drunk or not, her father was being beyond unreasonable and there was no point in listening to his drunk yammering any longer. "What`s your deal?!"

She paused and growled frustratingly. "You know what? Don't call back until you sober up!" she lashed out and then slammed the phone shut.

Taylor watched in surprise as she stormed away to the living room.

...

"Wynn?! Wynn!" her father yelled.

He was taken back by her response. Luan gave him a disapproving glare. As did Lana, though she wasn't quite sure what her father was talking about, all she knew was that he had just yelled and threatened Taylor for no apparent reason.

"Dad?" the teen voiced her disapproval, looking scandalized. "That was uncalled for!"

"Why were you yellin` at them?" Lana asked sadly. Lucy remained silent, she wasn't exactly proud of her fathers behavior, but she didn't feel like defending Lynn, let alone Taylor, neither. She was mainly concerned about Lincoln.

"I don't have time for dis, I`m goin` to get dem back home!" their father brushed them off and staggered towards the door.

Luan has had enough. She darted and blocked his way.

"You`re not going anywhere! Lincoln and Lynn are fine where they are and you're in no condition to drive!" she told him firmly.

"I told ya I`m not drwnk! Now move!" he ordered her, barely keeping his balance.

Luan looked at him angrily. "Yes you are!" she retorted sternly and crossed her arms. "As the eldest siblings it's my duty to be responsible and I`m not letting you get yourself killed!"

Her father grew a more timid look as she gave him a threatening glare.

"Now come!" she said sharply and grabbed his arm. She led her protesting father back to the couch.

...

Taylor found Lynn sitting on the couch, arms crossed and looking pissed. She was silent and Taylor scratched his neck.

"Okay...so that was...awkward." was the best response he could give to describe the phone conversation he had just witnessed.

Lynn remained quiet, and Taylor sat next to her. His eyes darted left to right and he tapped his knees as the uncomfortable silence continued.

"Eh...your dad seemed a bit...grumpy, is there somethin` goin` on at your place?" he asked uneasily, with a hint of concern.

The girl sighed. "No..." she muttered dejectedly "...dad just drank too much, at least that's what Luan said." she answered him before burying her face in her knees, still deeply embarrassed, but also knowing that she probably got herself in a whole heap of trouble.

Taylor bit back the urge to laugh upon learning this, seeing as his friend was upset.

"So...does this mean you're stayin` or should we worry that he`ll get a DUI?" he asked her, trying to bring out some levity.

Lynn kept her face hidden, still too embarrassed to look at him.

"No, I doubt the girls will let him go anywhere like that, but..." she sighed somberly "...I might as well stay here all weekend, cuz I know I`ll be grounded for smack talkin` to him."

Taylor shrugged his arms. "Eh, I wouldn't worry about it too much. If he was wasted like you said he was, he probably won't be able to remember a thing or you can just act like it never happened and he won't have the most clear memory to argue against that, and I`m sure your sisters won't rat you out." he tried to reassure her.

Lynn finally rose up and looked at him. "I guess you have a point..." she said quietly and looked aside "... and I'm sorry about what dad said."

Taylor wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Meh, it's nothin` really, I`ve received much more hostile greetings, way more hostile..." he told her nonchalantly.

She gave him a deadpan look. "Does anything faze you?" she asked sarcastically.

"Lynn, I`ve lived trough a wolf attack, thrice! After experiencin` somethin` like that, threats of violence from over-protective dads aren't really that scary in retrospect." he joked.

Lynn smiled slightly. "I know, I was there." she replied dryly. "Hmm...and well I guess there are worse things that can happen to ya than facin` an angry parent, or losin` a match. If there's anything that stupid campin` trip taught me, it's that."

"Well that campin` trip also gave me a firm reminder why I always was a cat person." Taylor quipped.

"You gotta make light of everything, huh?" the girl nudged him in the gut.

"Pretty much..." Taylor admitted freely "...comedy is just tragedy plus time, so any horrific accident that didn't end in anythin` tragic should be looked back at lightly by default."

"Your wisdom is unmatched." Lynn snarked before grabbing his cap and pulling it over his eyes. She jumped over the couch and went over to grab her charging phone.

"Hey where are ya off to?" he called after her as she rushed up the stairs.

"Have to tell Lincoln we're stayin`. You find a good horror flick for us to watch in the meantime!" she shouted down before disappearing upstairs. "Oh...but if Lincoln decides to join us, keep it PG!"

"A PG horror film? I doubt somethin` like that exists?" Taylor snarked smarmily.

"Then we`ll watch the Rip Hardcore marathon, Linc loves that show!" with that her voice faded away.

"Oh you gotta be kiddin` me!" Taylor lamented to himself. "He watches that crap too?!"

...

Lincoln sat on the bed shaking the spray cans he brought back with him. The smell on his temporary pijama was still unbearable. He was ready to start spraying himself when Lynn suddenly walked in.

"Hey Linc, I..." she halted as she saw him holding the can "...eh what are you doin`?" she pointed at him with a puzzled look.

Lincoln scowled and put the can down. "Trying not suffocate, these clothes stink!" he complained while pulling at his shirt.

Lynn sat next to him and took a whiff. "I don't see what the problem is, it's just a little sweat." she replied with an honest smile.

"A little? It smells like it was washed in tub of sweat!" Lincoln retorted, annoyed that his sister would just underplaying his problem.

"Linc, I think you're bein` a tad overdramatic, a little sweat never killed anyone. I should know." Lynn replied with a teasing smirk.

Lincoln rolled his eyes. Of course Lynn wouldn`t bat an eye over something like this, being covered in sweat and a general lack of hygiene was the norm for athletes like here. What was even the point of bringing it up to her?

"Eh...let`s agree to disagree on this..." he said flatly "...eh any news from dad?"

Lynn`s smile curved down a bit. "There is, and I`m afraid we're stayin` here for the night." Lynn broke it to him, knowing her little bro wouldn't be too enthusiastic about it.

"What?" Lincoln frowned, looking none too happy.

Lynn shifted awkwardly. "Looks like dad drank a little too much wine and he`s in no shape to pick us up. Luan just texted me, telling me that he was sobbing and rambling nonsense before they finally got him to lie down and sleep. So yeah, we`re stuck here."

Lincoln looked pretty devastated and glanced down at the floor.

Lynn frowned and pulled him in a one-arm hug. "Hey now bro, don't look so glum. We aren't stuck in freakin` prison, we're havin` a sleepover at a friends house..." she tried to cheer him up "...well okay _my_ friend, but we're both guests here and there's nothin` to be sad about."

"Look!" she raised her hand up. "You`ve got your own room for the night, with a tv and tons of Ace Savvy comics. What more would you wish for, Linc?" she pointed out smiling.

He looked up and sighed "I know Lynn, it's just...eh this place is unfamiliar to me." he told her half the truth, he didn't exactly know how to tell her " _I don't like your friend cuz he's smug, annoying, a creeper and I feel he doesn't want me here so he can court you_ " since Taylor hasn't technically done anything wrong to him, unless being insufferably smug and faux-friendly counted.

"I know how you feel bro, I felt nervous when I first stayed at Margo`s..." though she was like 8 back then Lynn mentally added "...but trust me, you get used to it pretty fast."

"I guess, I remember my first time staying at Clyde`s..." Lincoln smiled weakly.

"See, this is no different, why don't you join us downstairs? Didn't you mention something about a Rip Hardcore marathon airing tonight? We`ll watch it no matter how much Ryan might whine against it." Lynn tried to encourage him to join her.

" _I`m sure he`ll whine more about me just being there_." Lincoln thought bitterly.

"Eh no thanks. It's been a long day and I`m pretty pooped." he tried to excuse himself out of the invitation. "I think I'll just read a comic or two in bed and then go to sleep."

Lynn blinked, slightly disappointed. "Okay if that's what you want bro, you go catch some Zs, see ya tomorrow." she softly fist bumped him and jumped off the bed.

"Yeah, you go...eh enjoy yourself." he replied, trying to sound upbeat.

" Goodnight, don't let the bed bugs bite!" and gone she was.

" _Knowing Taylor`s sense of hygiene, that might just be a genuine concern_." Lincoln muttered.

Now alone, he sighed heavily, he was stuck here for the night. Might as well make the best of it. He started off spraying himself until both cans were completely empty.

Then he found a flashlight and turned off the room lights. Reading comics alone with a flashlight gave him some nostalgic comfort which reminded him of better days.

He didn't really need to be ordered not to read in his underwear, that odd quirk of his has recently lost its appeal to the boy, as he actively tried to avoid seeing his upper body exposed and all the traumatic reminders carved across it.

He turned on the flashlight, but as he pointed it at the bed he was faced with glowing green eyes. Startled and yelping, Lincoln jerked back, stepped on the leg of his pants and hit the floor. Luckily, he managed to avoid hitting his head by landing on his elbow.

" _What was that?_ " he thought uneasily and pointed the flashlight at the bed again, but saw nothing. Feeling a drop of sweat running down his temple, the nervous boy scanned the room with the light, only to suddenly hear purring as something soft brushed against his chest and chin.

His eyes adjusting to the dark, he saw the outline of a cat moving towards his foot and she quickly dropped to the floor and started playing with the loose leg of his pants.

" _It`s a cat?_ " he felt relieved, and also like a stupid, chicken-hearted baby. He got up and dusted himself, the cat looked at him with her emerald eyes and rather quickly moved to stroke her body against his legs.

Lincoln moved cautiously around the feline and sat back on the bed. Pointing his flashlight down, he saw that the cat had a smooth, glossy, jet black coat, like a mini panther, not unlike Cliff. She looked up at him curiously.

"Eh..hello." Lincoln greeted her awkwardly, not sure what to think of it. He recalled Lynn offhandedly mentioning Taylor owning a cat, but if this was that cat, Lincoln felt hard pressed to believe this pet belonged to someone like Taylor, given how calm and affectionate she was being to a total stranger, even Cliff was a lot more aloof even around his owners.

Marceline jumped onto the bed and started playing with his sleeve. A small smile tugged on Lincoln`s lips and he petted the cat behind her ear, prompting her to purr. She moved closer and rested in his lap.

"Eh...you wanna hang out with me, I guess?" he wondered out loud and petted her on her back. He forgot how calming and pleasant it was stroking a cat, especially as this one looked quiet similar to Cliff.

" _Well looks like I`ll have some company for the night after all_." Lincoln thought. And honestly, he didn't mind it.

...

Under the cover of darkness, while being pounded by the merciless rain and the chilling wind, with nothing but his hoodie to protect him from the elements, the drenched and shaking Lyle was on the move. Hugging himself for warmth and grumbling miserably, he kept trudging trough the stormy night.

If this damn storm of was of any benefit, then it was the fact that no one, not even the cops were crazy enough to waltz around under such weather, making it easy for him to move unnoticed trough the suburban neighborhood.

After what seemed like an eternity, he found himself facing a familiar house with the name Morgan typed on the mailbox. His beady eyes scanned his surroundings, looking for a way to enter. Knocking and going trough the front door wasn't an option.

However, much to his relief and delight, he found a rope ladder hanging from a room on the second floor. Lyle smiled gleefully as lighting zapped trough the sky, followed by cracks of thunder.

Carefully climbing up the slippery ladder, the soaked preteen eventually reached the window. As he hauled himself up, he spotted the person he was looking for, sitting and looking at her laptop, her back turned on him.

She didn't budge as she heard the window being pushed ope,n and the drenched Lyle jumped into the room.

"You took your time." He heard her quiet and apathetic sounding voice address him.

Muttering under his breath, Lyle forced a smile as he pulled his wet hoodie aside.

"Margaret. It's good to see you again. Your sunny disposition never fails to lift my spirit." he greeted her in an affable tone.

She turned around on her spinning stool, her pale, unemotive face and hollow stare directed at him. Most people would have been put off by her demeanor, but Lyle was used to it. She also sported a faint bruise on her cheek, but Lyle didn't take notice of it.

"What happened?" she asked plainly, her tone and expression remaining blank.

"I ran into some trouble..." the boy grumbled begrudgingly as he took off his jacket and squeezed the water out of it, only to feel the chilly bite of the wind blowing at him, forcing him to hastily push the window shut.

"You`re cold. Do you need a blanket?" she asked him, showing a small tint of concern in her voice.

" _Yes, I would appreciate that_." Lyle responded trough his teeth, trying to subdue his annoyance at the stupid question.

Soon he was sitting on Maggie`s bed, wrapped in a blanket and shaking. She sat on her stool across from him.

"So what happened?" she asked him plainly once again.

Muttering bitterly, Lyle replied. "I saw the two brats leavin` the bus and I took my opportunity to grab that blonde-haired pest, but she slipped trough my grasp." he lamented while clenching his fists.

"I wouldn't have thought that grabbing and chloroforming a first grader was much of a task." she said in her emotionless tone. Lyle gave her a glare.

"It _is_ when there are witnesses everywhere." he hissed irritably.

"I made sure to remember the route they usually took and followed them. But then, out of the blue, they suddenly ran to a pet store. And when they came out, they split up and the Loud brat drove off with some family of bozos!"

"Misfortune is a cruel and chaotic force of nature that always strikes those who least expect it. There is no use in fighting it." the emo explained apathetically.

Lyle sneered. "You think that was rotten luck? When I came back home, the cops were there! How the hell did they find me?!"

Maggie could think of a reason or two. But she saw no point in trying to tell him that.

She did tell him that his ever more frequent escapades to the outside world were a bad idea, but Lyle was never one to take advice. His poor parents did their best to hide him until the heat died down, but once boredom kicked in, he started sneaking out at night, trying to find some excitement.

Knocking some poor kid in the head with his baseball bat in a dark alley, and grabbing his wallet was probably the part that really tipped off the cops.

Lyle suddenly snickered. "But at least my precious little chloroform didn't go to waste, as a certain dumbass of a cop found out the hard way." He chuckled gleefully before lying down on the bed.

"So, what are you going to do now?" Maggie asked.

Lyle shifted his gaze at the emo. "Right now, I`m goin` to ask you to shut your yap and let me sleep..." he adjusted his pillow and turned his back to her "...oh...and get me a soda or somethin1, I`m parched!" he raised his hand up and waived it as a sign for Maggie to go.

"Okay Lyle..." the emo obliged and left her room, locking the door from the outside just to be safe, before going down the stairs.

"Maggie, what's all the noise up there! Were you talkin` to someone?!" a voice shouted from the living room.

Maggie scowled slightly. "Yes mom, I was talking to a friend on Skype!" she shouted back, one of the rare instance where she would raise her voice.

"Well keep it down! We`re watchin` tv!" her father shouted.

Maggie didn't answer, she looked away indifferently and continued her way towards the fridge...

 **An inebriated person will easily spill out his deepest, most personal thoughts, and Lynn`s dad just expressed what most fathers have on their mind the moment their daughter gets friendly with a boy XD Poor Lynn, but Taylor was lucky that her father wasn't there with them or he might have been hammered enough to make good on his threat XD**

 **And I`ve finally shown who`s in cahoots with the antagonist, besides his evidently not very bright parents. I honesty don't get why Maggie is so popular with the fandom, given that she's just a minor one-shot character with nothing much to her besides being a generic emo, but since I keep seeing her everywhere and writes tend to use her largely blank and open to interpretation character in a very one-note way (I don't get why fans think Luan is a lesbian either XD) I felt inspired to use her character in a radically different way. Though how much she`ll be present in this story remains to be seen...**


	7. The More The Merrier!

"Luan, my tummy`s hurtin`..." Lana whined from across the table. They had just managed to get their inebriated father to go to sleep, though not before watching him sob drunkenly and express his regrets, not just for losing his temper with Lynn, but also about his belief about being an awful parent and husband following his family`s string of misfortune.

Hearing it was heart-wrenching for the girls, and Luan knew that she would have to have a serious discussion with her father about his own insecurities, maybe with Lincoln`s help. But that would have to wait. It was only now that the sisters realized how they hadn't eaten anything all day long.

"I`m sorry Lana, but you know I`m not much of a cook, but don't worry, I`ve ordered a large pizza for all of us." Luan reassured her.

"We sure were lucky that I found enough spare change to even pay for one." she commented further while grabbing a single apple from a bowl.

"But when`s it gonna come? I can't wait anymore!" the tomboy complained with a saddened look. Despite feeling half-starved herself, Luan couldn't bare watching her little sister`s sorrowful mood, so she sighed and offered her the apple instead.

Lana accepted it and took a bite. While she was munching, Luan tried to savor the moment of piece and took a look at her arms, her rash was still very visible.

" _Guess I`ll have to find a way to cover it all up when I go performing tomorrow_." she mused sadly, knowing that right now countless teens and kids were probably laughing at her online. If she only knew...

"Hwey...Wruan?" Lana spoke with a full mouth "...why..whras..dgad...whelring... ad..Wian?"

Luan looked confused and Lana swallowed. "I said, why did dad yell at Ryan?" she repeated.

Luan placed a hand on Lana`s shoulder. "He...eh...didn`t mean to, really. He just drank too much wine and wasn't himself..." she tried to explain.

"What do ya mean by that?" Lana asked innocently.

Luan puffed. "I`m not quite sure myself, but from what I know adults sometimes drink wine or beer and other such drinks to help them relax a bit after a hard day, but if they drink too much of it it can make them go a bit loony, too much of a good thing."

Luan then smiled, sat next to her and patted her sister`s head. "Kinda like when you and Lola would eat too much sugar."

"Hey! I never went crazy from eatin` candy!" a miffed Lana protested while pushing Luan`s hand away.

Her sister chuckled. "You and her might not remember, but the rest of us sure do.." she paused to shudder "...and trust me, we`d rather not."

"But still, why would he still be angry at Ryan?" Lana wondered.

Luan snickered mischievously. "An excellent question, sis. That`s something we call "Over-Protective Dad Syndrome", or in other words : dads just don't like seeing their daughters grow up and meet boys. And if you have no less than nine daughters your over-protectiveness must be in super, hyper overdrive." she explained jokingly.

"I don't get it? What's wrong with playin` with boys?" Lana questioned, feeling only more perplexed. She usually enjoyed playing with boys much more than with most girls her age anyway.

Luan smirked. "Oh it`s not playing with boys that dad`s got an issue with. It's more about his fear that Lynn or another one of our sisters will get...well how do I put it..." she pondered "...will get affectionate with said boy, enamored, infatuated..." Luan`s smirk grew "...romantically involved."

Her sister`s reaction was unsurprising.

"Ewww..." Lana cringed "...Luan, why do you keep sayin` that? Why do you keep teasin` Lynn that she`s in love with Ryan? It's really gross!"

"Me?" Luan snickered while pointing at herself. "I`m not teasing anyone, I`m just seeing the obvious. It's no secret that Ryan really likes Lynn, I mean have you forgotten how much he has been flirted with her before?"

"But..." Lana looked at her awkwardly "...but datin`, and kissin` boys, that's all icky and gross...and icky..."

Luan leaned in closer. " Aww Lana, I know you don't understand these kind of things, but having a boyfriend isn't that bad. It's just another person you deeply care about and want to spend time with, it's no different than loving your family, or your friends. It's just that with this _special_ friend you do some _special_ things...like kissing..." Luan blushed slightly at the thought of that.

Lana didn't look any less grossed out.

"But of course...eh...a girl doesn't have to do that if she doesn't want to." Luan quickly added, realizing this kind of discussion was proably uncomfortable for Lana.

Lana squinted her eyes pondering. "So...you`re sayin` it's just like havin` another best friend? And ya don't have to be all yucky and mushy...like Lori?" the tomboy asked, her oldest sister being the only point of reference regarding romance she could think of.

Luan smiled amusingly and shrugged.

"More or less, most couples aren't nearly as sickeningly affectionate as Lori and Bobby." she giggled. "I mean a couple can act however they want to, but personally I wouldn't wanna take pointers from Lori."

"There's only so much affection most people can take, and most draw the line at nauseating pet names and texting one another every ten minutes." Luan clarified. She couldn't speak from any personal experience, but Lori definitely gave her some idea about what she _wouldn't_ want to do.

Lana paused and imagined Lynn calling Taylor by the same pet names Lori used for her boyfriend, and instantly snickered uncontrollably. It was both disgusting and yet somehow hilarious to her.

"So? How do couples usually act?" she asked curiously.

"Casual, like most people I`d say..." Luan shrugged "...most probably don't get very romantic with each other unless they are all alone, like mom and dad were..." Luan paused and looked away awkwardly "...well minus the bitter breakup...I hope..."

"Like mom and dad were?" Lana asked, remembering how heart-broken their father was after the divorce, and how she was likewise devastated when she had to part ways with her twin. If Lynn and Taylor meant that much to each other, then by all means she should want them to be together, Lynn was her big sister and she considered Taylor a friend and even someone to look up to.

"Say, if they were together, would that make Ryan...like...part of our family?"

"Hmm...technically not, unless he and Lynn got hitched!" Luan joked, biting back the urge to giggle. "But I don't think they'll be ready for that for another seven or eight years."

Even to Luan that notion wasn't something she meant seriously, but Lana started to subtly like the idea.

"So...you really think Lynn likes him that much?" Lana asked.

Luan mused. "Well, it's next to impossible to get an answer like that out of Lynn, since she isn't the type who likes to talk about her feelings, but I have no reason to doubt it, given how inseparable the two have become at school. And since she`s family, I would certainly want to see her happy and spare her a lot of pointless and tedious friend zone melodrama while I`m at it ."

"Friend zone...what?" a baffled Lana starred at her .

"It`s a figure of speech, Lana. It's when a boy meets a girl and they become fast friends, but then they grow feelings for each other, but neither can spill it out cuz they are so used to being friends and feel all awkward and wrong for feeling that way, leading to months of relationship drama and the girl eventually ends up with a different guy who's a a huge jerk-face and doesn't deserve her, so the boy has to race and finally confess his feelings for her before he looses her forever, and so on...or at least that's what I`ve learned from watching lots of teen sitcoms." Luan admitted nonchalantly.

"And to think that they all could have avoided all of that if one just asked the other out on a date right from the start!" she stated poignantly.

Lana wasn't really sure what to make of that. "Eh...and you think Ryan would be happy that way too?"

Luan brightened up and chortled. "Happy? I would bet that he would be leaping with joy so high that he would eventually smack his head into the moon!"

Lana smiled fondly. "Well, I do want him to be happy, I know he`s a good guy under his rough outside and he deserves to have friends...I sure wish I could see him again..." then something hit her.

"Say Luan..." she faced her sister, but they both suddenly heard Lisa screaming in frustration.

...

"So, did ya destroy the flashdrive?"

Taylor faced away from his laptop to see Lynn behind him, leaning against his chair.

The boy snorted. "Destroy it? You do realize that I`m gonna need that thing in the future, there are ways to fix a problem without just smashin` things, ya know?"

Lynn rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah..." she replied dismissively "...did you terminate that stupid video?"

Taylor sighed amusingly." Sure I did, I uploaded it all on my laptop here and immediately canned every last frame of it. _We destroyed the evidence!_ "

Then he remembered something. "Hey? Shouldn't you be watchin` the popcorn?"

"I got bored." Lynn answered coolly before making a twirl as she backed away. "Besides, I wanted to ask you somethin`."

Taylor turned off the the laptop. "And what's that?"

"I`ll tell you in a moment. But do you know where your cat is?" Lynn snickered.

Taylor didn't answer and looked around.

"Well I just peaked inside Lincoln`s room, and turns out he and Marceline are sleepin` together. I haven`t seen such an adorable sight in ages!" Lynn replied, almost gushing.

Taylor couldn't believe his ears. " _That damn cat takes a liking to everyone. At least that brat is out of the picture._ " he mused inwardly.

"Uhuh...fascinating..." he responded dryly, clearly not sharing her sentiment "...and you were tryin` to ask me?"

"Just look out of the window." Lynn pointed out.

Taylor did so and was quite surprised by what he saw.

"Huh, the storm`s goin` away." he dully noted, seeing that the rain had dialed back and the clouds spaced out, revealing a bit of the night sky.

"And here I was worryin` that we were in for a hurricane!" Taylor said sarcastically.

Lynn ignored his remark and got to the point. "Exactly. And while I`m all for watchin` movies all night long..." she told him not-so-sincerely "...I always wanted to stay up late and..."

"And, lem`me take a wild guess, play sports under the moon light?" Taylor finished smarmily, earning a small glare from his friend.

"Lynn, you're way too predictable." he shook his head amusingly.

"So what if I am?" she shrugged as she sat on his bed. "I always wanted to play soccer or footfall or basketball or just do anythin` way past dark, but my folks never let me do it, even on weekends, cuz they thought it would mess up my "biological clock" or some crap like that."

"Hmm.." Taylor considered "...well that ain't a bad idea, exept you do realize that the whole yard is probably gonna be one big, slippery bog?"

"So? I`ve played under much worse conditions, the tricks is to overcome all the obstacles. Plus, it's not nearly as fun if ya don't get at least a little dirty."

"You would want to get your fine clothes dirty?" Taylor probed teasingly with mock surprise. To his actual surprise, Lynn smirked proudly, utterly unfazed.

"What can say? Always was one of the boys, never was in touch with my feminine side, especially cleanliness." she shrugged haughtily.

Like she was ashamed to admit that. If Taylor thought he could get to her with a jab at her lack of femininity then he was seriously losing his touch.

"Sure, dad might freak out if I come back home dirty, but I`m sure you would lend me some clothes so I would't have to mess up my favorite jersey?"

Taylor stood up. "Disobeyin` your pops and coverin` up your tracks? Why Lynn, you're learnin` quicker than I had expected. I must be a better teacher than even I had thought." he spoke self-aggrandizingly.

Lynn huffed "Yeah, you're the unchallenged champion in bein` an underhanded sneak, but I would like to see how well you can keep your footing on slippery terrain?" she folded her arms, carrying a challenging smirk.

Taylor didn't bite and looked out the window. "Well I dunno, I`d say I have pretty good footing, I scaled rocky cliffs, tracked trough swamps, climbed up the highest trees I could find..."

" _Sure ya did_..." Lynn`s sarcastic retort cut into his bragging "...we`ll see how much water that will hold after you land on your face about a dozen times out there. But hey, if somethin` like football proves too hard for ya we can do somethin` more up your alley. Like mud wrestlin`!"

"Mud wrestlin`?" Taylor snorted, unable to keep a straight face. "Are ya twelve, or two years old?"

"Why not, tough guy? Fraid you`ll lose?" Lynn smirked. "Well I suppose you outgha be, I am a pro at wrestlin`, me and Linc have been practicin` it since he took his first steps."

"He was your sparrin` partner at _wrestlin`_?" Taylor cocked an eye brow, being hard-pressed to believe it.

Lynn`s face dropped a bit. "Well...kay, he might not have been very good at it and it sorta took me a while to realize it..."

"It took you _ten years_ to realize that lil`Lincoln wasn't cut out for wrestlin`?" he gave her an almost pittying look.

"Oh, give me a break!" Lynn retorted. "I`ve spent enough time beatin` up myself over it, don't need to rub it in."

"Actually that explains a lot." Taylor mused.

"Explains what?" Lynn questioned sharply, not liking the teasing look on his face.

"Why it's so easy to take you down in a brawl. I thought it was just the simple fact of boys bein` stronger than girls..." Taylor backed a few steps away upon seeing his friend tense up and twitch her eye.

"...BUT, if you`ve mostly just practiced combat on him..."

"Is that a challenge?!" she asked harshly with narrowed eyes.

Taylor raised his hands up defensively. "Wow, chill out, I don't wanna hurt ya."

"Oh that`s it!" With the help of the springs in the mattress, she flung herself at Taylor and tackled him to the floor, pinning both of his arms down .

"You just never learn?" Taylor responded snidely, before easily pushing his arms up and wrapping them around the girl`s waist.

In an instant Lynn lost control, as Taylor pulled her against him in a crushing embrace. He rolled over and was soon on top of her, still keeping her restrained.

"Give up?" he laughed.

" _Alright!_ " Lynn hissed exasperatedly.

"Well that was easy." Taylor quipped, but the moment he loosened his grip he felt Lynn`s elbow striking him in the chest. Gasping, he stumbled back, while Lynn kneeled up.

" _That was cheatin`_." Taylor hissed in a strained voice while clutching his chest. Lynn smirked at him.

"Since when did _you_ care about playin` fair?" she remarked snidely.

Grumbling, Taylor tried to tackle her, but she swiftly slipped betweven his legs. A second later, she jumped on his back, covered his eyes with one arm and grabbed him in a choke hold with the other.

Tumbling backwards, he fell on his bed with Lynn on top of him. Suddenly she pulled the blanket over them, encasing them both in darkness.

"You know I`ll just push you off, right?" Taylor snarked while having his head pressed against the mattress.

"Not after I pull out my secret weapon!" Lynn countered triumphantly and released a Dutch Oven.

A few seconds later, however, and Taylor had no reaction. He only took a whiff and she heard him say "Really? That's it?" in the most deadpan, unimpressed tone imaginable.

" _Aw, crud_..." she muttered before being pushed off to the side. Taylor got off the bed and onto his feet while grabbing the blanket, before turning towards Lynn.

"You know I`m not Lincoln, right?" he smirked at her. Lynn fumed as she kneeled up and angrily tried to grab him, only for him wrap her up with the blanket.

Blinded and disoriented, Lynn squirmed as she felt herself being hoisted up. Once she finally managed to free her head, she realized that Taylor was holding her over his shoulder like a sack of flour, and kept her legs restrained.

"Hey! Let me down!" she roared furiously.

"Not till you say "I surrender"...or beg for mercy, either works. " Taylor replied smugly.

"Never!" Lynn freed her arms and started pounding on his back.

Taylor yawned, unfazed. "I can keep this up all night, Lynn." he said confidently.

"Ya know, you'd be surprised how easy this is for me. Either you're made of styrofoam, or I`m just that strong." he bragged and started flexing his arm.

Growling bitterly, Lynn dug into her nose and gave Taylor a wet willie. The boy shut his eyes tight and shuddered trough gritted teeth.

"Alright! Enough!" he growled annoyingly and kneeled down. He placed Lynn against the bed and she unwrapped herself, while he picked the bugger out of his ear before sitting next to her.

"You know, if your last resort is cheap gross-out tricks then you know you've lost." he told her in a dry, snarky tone.

"Lost? Huh! I got you to back out of the fight!" Lynn huffed haughtily.

"Back off?" Taylor laughed. "I had you wrapped up like a burrito! I simply grew tired of your ever more desperate and childish "tries" to win. I won fair and square."

"No you didn't!" Lynn snarled defiantly.

"Yes I did." Taylor retorted smugly.

"No you didn't!"

"Yes I did."

"No you didn't!"

"Yes I did."

"No you didn't!"

"Yes I did."

"No you didn't!"

"No I didn't."

"YES YOU DID!" Lynn stopped and immediately clamped her mouth shut, before sending Taylor a glare.

"Well then, you are a good sport after all." Taylor shrugged in a chill tone.

"This is not over!" Lynn pointed her finger at him angrily.

"Sure, if it makes ya feel better..." the boy replied, looking disinterested.

Lynn`s gaze shifted down as she silently fumed, when something caught her eye. A rather thin, dust-covered book underneath the bed.

"Hey, what's that?"

Taylor looked to his side and saw her pulling something up. It took him a couple of seconds to realize what it was and he gasped.

"Give me that." he said urgently.

Seeing his reaction, Lynn smirked deviously and threw the blanket in his face. By the time he pulled it off she reaching for the door.

Once she reached the hall, Lynn was tackled by the waist and dropped to the floor, still holding the book. Acting quickly, she placed both feet against Taylor`s chest as he tried to restrain her, and pushed him away.

Taylor was slammed against a door and clutched his aching head. By the time he came to, Lynn was gone.

Cursing, Taylor raced down the stairs and eventually found her lying belly down on the couch.

He saw saw her already flipping trough the pages and giggling. Taylor deflated dejectedly before facepalming.

"Oh Ryan, I had no idea you used to be so adorable." Lynn snickered while showing him the open pages of the photo album, containing several baby pictures.

Taylor`s eyes were twitching madly and he was turning as red as a lobster. "Give me that!" he snapped and snatched the album from her hands.

Lynn kept giggling. "Oh don't be so secretive, I just wanted to learn more about you." she told him half-seriously.

"So you can laugh at the sight of me in diapers, after you nearly cracked my skull?" his tone immediately dropped to flat and deadpan, trough this time there was no underlining hint of humor. His head was still hurting too much to joke.

Lynn bit back laughter. "I won't, I wasn't even laughin` at you, I did say you looked adorable."

With a bitter glare, Taylor grunted "Forget it" and tried to walk away when Lynn grabbed him by the elbow.

"Hey, come on. I know nothin` about you before you moved here." she said coyingly.

"So? It's the past. It means jackshit to me, so why would you want to know?" he responded irritably.

"Eh maybe cuz I`m your friend and friends share stuff with each other?" she told him matter-of-factly. Taylor tried to yank his arm free but she wouldn't let go.

"C`mon Ryan, if ya show me, I`ll show you some old pictures of me I have on my phone? _Pleeeeeease_!"

"I never asked for that." he replied plainly."And there ain't much to see."

" _Please!_ " she gave him the sad, puppy-dog eyes again. Taylor felt himself caving in again at the sight of it and inwardly cursed to the heavens.

"Alright! Alright!" she he exclaimed belligerently and sat next to her. "We`ll flip trough it once! And that's it!"

"Yeesh, what's gotten into you?" she asked teasingly.

"Cuz don't like to and never showed this to anyone." he answered her in a grumpy manner.

"Well then, it pleases me to be the first." Lynn elbowed him.

"Just quirk it and let me get this over with." Taylor muttered and flipped trough the pages.

"You saw the pictures when I was one year old, here are some when I was two, yadda, yadda..."

"Hey, slow down and let me see..." Lynn stopped him from rapidly turning the pages.

The boy exhaled exasperatedly. "What`s there to see?" he asked dryly. "It`s just stupid photos of a baby doin` stupid baby stuff."

Sadly for him, Lynn was once again distracted and tuning him out.

"Awww look at that? Is that where you got your cap? Looks like you hadn't quite grown into it." Lynn snickered and pointed out at the photo of the 2 year old Taylor having half his head covered by a red cap.

"Not at all." he replied unenthusiastically. "I had many caps, still do. And I`ve lost or thrown away plenty of them over the years. I don't even know when I got this one..." he tilted his current cap slightly "...it's just clothes after all." he shrugged.

"Ya serious?" Lynn gave him a look of disbelief before pulling on her jersey. "I`ve worn this thing since I was ten! I grew into it and I`ve never washed it since!" she stated proudly.

Taylor blinked.

"Wanna know why? Cuz it's my lucky jersey! When I wear it, I don't have a shadow of a doubt that I`m headin` straight for victory!" she said it all in such a bombastic and over the top manner that Taylor had to supress the urge to make a dozen snide comment on it.

" _She thinks wearing a sweaty jersey brings one luck? That`s...something?_ " He had never pegged Lynn as a superstitious one.

"Sure..." he spoke dryly "...but I`d think someone with your skill wouldn't need to relay on lucky charms?"

"I do have plenty of skill and I never doubt them." Lynn replied proudly. "But it never hurts to have a little good luck on your side, especially during the big games."

She caught on to the look Taylor was giving her and tensed up defiantly "...but it doesn't mean I`m some superstitions nut, okay? I ain't talkin` about crap like ghosts bein` real or breakin` a mirror givin` ya bad luck... _that`s more of Lucy weird, little imagination_." she snidely added in her head.

"It`s just little stuff, like how I never "bomb the toilet" before a big game, trust me! That one always brings me some extra luck!"

Taylor was puzzled, before finally making the mental leap about what she meant. He shuddered instantly.

"Yeah, sure...how `bout we get back to my baby photos?" He never thought he would say that, but dammit, Lynn found a topic inherently worse.

That last thing he wanted to know about her was the going-ons in her digestive track, and today he was learning far more about it than he wished to know.

"Okay Ryan, but you could really stand to learn a thing or two about sentimentality." Lynn shrugged and looked back at the album.

She quickly pointed at a photo of the 2 year old Taylor sleeping in his crib and hugging a plush tiger.

"Always had a fondness for felines from the start, huh?" Lynn nudged him.

"I suppose..." Taylor shrugged before a fond smile crept into his face "...but I recall gettin` tired of that little birthday gift pretty quickly after realizin` it wasn't a real tiger, it wasn't even orange but yellow!" he started reminiscing.

"So when I was four, I lent that thing to the local baboons to play...and let's just say that by the end of the day nobody could identify it as either a toy or as a yellow pillow. I certainly had a good laugh searchin` the "crime scene"." he said fondly.

Lynn shook her head. "You got issues, dude." she snorted.

" _Oh please_ , what kid hasn't massacred their toys after growin` into their big boy pants." Taylor sneered amusingly.

" _Well, better than not drownin` your plush toy until your ten, I suppose?_ " the girl thought to herself.

"Oh, look at that!"

Taylor`s face cringed as Lynn noted the picture of his infant self lying in his crib and crying.

"Why didn't ya say "cheese" instead of puttin` on the waterworks? Did ya bomb your diaper or somethin`?" Lynn questioned with a teasing smirk.

"I think we`re finished..." the blushing Taylor tried to yank the book away, but Lynn pulled it back.

"Hey, chill out, I`m sorry...I wasn't mocking ya." Lynn said apologetically.

Taylor gave her an unconvinced glare.

"Hey, we made a deal and I ain't gonna swindle ya. You showed me some of your pictures, and I`ll show you mine."

Lynn grabbed her phone, while Taylor rolled his eyes. He didn't care about "getting even" with Lynn, he just wanted to take the stupid album and throw it into the dumpster.

Lynn was swiping the screen and going trough the files. "Ah, here it is. The first time me and Linc spent some brother-sister time together." Lynn said fondly as she showed her friend a photo of her 2 year old self sleeping and cuddling her newborn brother in bed.

Despite his disinterest, Taylor`s eye widened a bit as he viewed the photo. "Wait? So, was he...born with white hair?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"Yeah, so?" Lynn replied.

"It`s just weird..." Taylor mused jokingly "...I kinda assumed he just had one really big fright at some point in his life which spooked all the color out of his hair." Taylor snorted, only to see Lynn giving him a look.

"What?" he shrugged. "It was a solid theory."

Lynn choose to ignore him. "Ah, and look at this, that's when I was five. Back then me and him were sharin` a room. Those were the days." she thought back about it fondly.

The picture showed little Lynn sitting amongst a pile of toys and pulling her younger brother into a hug. Her hair was down, she lacked her freckles, as did her brother, and she was wearing a t-shirt with red sleeve and the number one on the front, much like her jersey. She was smiling, showing a gap in her teeth, and surprisingly, so was Lincoln. Both looked like they were enjoying each others company immensely.

Lynn showed another one, taken from the same year. It showed her walking the 3 year old Lincoln trough the backyard. And one of them playing together in a bubble bath.

And another one, here they looked a bit older, both of them in swimwear jumping and laughing while being sprayed by a sprinkler. Taylor got oddly quiet while Lynn was showing him her fondest memories. What he saw felt odd to him, and to some level seeing the pictures of those two playing together felt strangely bothersome to him, almost like he felt envious for some reason?

Taylor, however, choose to ignore that inkling feeling.

And lastly, she showed him a picture from when she was in third grade, smiling and escorting her brother reassuringly, who had a visible bruise on his cheek. In the background another boy was sitting on the floor, crying and clutching his battered face. Taylor didn't need any context to figure out what had happened.

He just whistled in amazement. "Damn! Brutal."

"Yep, I`m glad Luan was there to take a picture. I got into a lot of trouble for this, but it was worth it. You mess with my family, you pay the price."

"So did that kid need plastic surgery?" Taylor quipped.

"Nah, but he was too scared to attend school for a week. And needed some counselin`." Lynn answered coolly.

"And they still let you roam free after that?" Taylor raised his eye brow.

Lynn just smiled.

"And people call _me_ a menace." the boy snorted dryly.

"And do you have photos of your family?" Lynn suddenly asked.

Taylor chortled. "Nah, this ol`album is just this Taylor`s memories..." he pointed at himself "...and none of the others."

"You can't be serious? You didn't take a single photo with your siblings?" Lynn looked gobsmacked.

"Yup, I was never into collecting memories to begin with, let alone family bonding, you know that already." the boy explained before showing her the rest of the album.

The remaining pictures showed him during his elementary school years. The images weren't anything noteworthy, exept for one thing, in all of them he was alone, many of which looked like selfies. With the exeption of an occasional cat or dog, his previous pets, popping up and playing with the boy, he was always on his own.

Lynn already knew about Taylor`s history and how he`s disconnected with his family, it was nothing new. But seeing evidence of it like this made her feel sorry for him again, just like the time they were trapped in the van.

"Well that's all!" Taylor concluded happily, shutting the album.

"Ryan, haven't you thought that maybe, you should try to patch things up with your sister and brother? I mean now that you're no longer bullyin` kids and you're finally makin` friends, maybe it's time to tie all loose ends?" Lynn suggested intuitively.

Taylor was surprised. "Why?" he shrugged, obviously confused by her suggestion. "We get along just fine, everyone just minds their own business."

"I meant spendin` time together." Lynn clarified in a serious tone.

Taylor snorted. "Yeah good one, Lynn. I can't spend time with them, they are both bores and we have nothin` in common. That's why we always kept to ourselves." he explained.

"So you would rather just cut off all ties with your family?" she asked him rhetorically, getting irked.

Taylor remained chill, but started getting what she was talking about. " _Oh wonderful, she`s gonna give me another nauseating lecture about the importance of family_." he lamented tiredly.

"Now wait a minute." he retorted calmly. "You can't chastise me for not being pro-family time. I don't see you being all stoked to be with your family, all you ever talk about is Lincoln. And all those photos you`ve showed me are just of you and him."

"So what? He`s my favorite brother." Lynn huffed.

"You mean your only brother?" Taylor smirked.

He crossed his arms with a look of superiority. "At least I`m not pickin` favorites."

"Hey, that's not true, I spend time with the others too!" Lynn retorted.

Taylor shrugged his arms. "Eh...maybe when you all come together for some mandated family activities, but do you actually like spendin` time with any one of your sisters?" he asked bluntly.

Lynn became stunned. "Well...I..." her voice trailed off.

Taylor watched her, not really pressing her to answer, just waiting for a response.

"Okay..." she begrudgingly admitted "...I maybe I`m not very close with any of them. But what am I do? None of my big sisters like playin` sports, two were obsessed with shoppin`, one did nothin` but play rocken roll, you know Luan, and the others were all too young too keep up with me, nevermind the ones who had their own weird hobbies. What was I supposed to do but play with my only brother, even if he was never in the best of shape?"

Taylor smiled, not smugly. Rather her wore a look of understanding.

"That`s what I`ve been sayin`, Lynn." he told her in a chill manner and came closer.

"If you don't have anythin` in common, then what's the point in tryin` to be friends? That`s the very reason why we look for friends, so we don't have to deal with family as our only company 24/7. You can choose your friends, but you can't choose family, whether ya like it or not."

Lynn looked at him oddly, unsure how to respond. "Well I like all my family. Some of them can get pretty annoyin`, but they are still family."

"Hey now..." Taylor spoke up "...I never said I hated my family, we`re just not very close cuz we`re too different, like with you and your sisters. That's why I wanted to hang out with you, cuz you're cool and lots of fun."

Lynn blushed slightly. "Oh..eh thanks. You're not the worst person to be with either." she tried to joke.

Before Taylor could reply he sniffed the air and detected the smell of smoke.

"Oh crap, the popcorn." he lamented before bolting towards the kitchen, hoping he wouldn't have to resort to the fire extinguisher, leaving Lynn once again alone.

She felt annoyed. She didn't even know what she was exactly trying to tell her friend. Not to take his family for granted! That's what it was, but he just twisted it around and made her admit about her own lack of connection with most of her sisters. She hated acknowledging that.

"Damn it!" she heard Taylor cursing from the kitchen, and realized that she may have also started a fire, and gulped nervously.

...

Lucy remained silent as she rested on the bottom bunk, listening to her younger sister grumbling in frustration and throwing more and more crumbled pieces of paper to the floor.

She knew better than to disturb Lisa while she was brainstorming. She had nothing else to do, they couldn't go watch tv so they wouldn`t disturb their slumbering father, and she was quickly growing bored.

She tried to think of something to do to kill time, but her mind would constantly drift back to her brother, as she remained worried knowing his current whereabouts. The thought of being trapped alone in a house with Lynn and the one she didn't want to think of by name sounded like a genuine nightmare to her, and not of the good kind.

She turned her head towards the cage standing next to her and noticed that Fang was missing. Alarmed, she got up, but much to her relief she found him crawling on the bed. It seemed that somehow the small mammal had found a way to squeeze himself out.

" _Come here._ " she whispered and cooped him up with her hands and placed him in her lap.

"I told you that you need to stay put." she whispered sternly. She knew that her father would probably be out cold any moment now, but the young goth couldn't shake away the gnawing paranoia that her unapproved secret pet would be discovered as long as her dad was nearby.

The bat looked at her with his black, soulful eyes which instantly melted her heart. "Sigh. Don't look at me like that, Fang. You know you have to stay hidden." she told him.

Right then she heard Lisa groaning angrily and throwing her clipboard, pencil and earmuffs to the floor. The little genius climbed down the ladder and crossed her arms as she sat down, cursing under her breath.

"Eh...is something bothering you?" Lucy inquired awkwardly. Lisa glared at her, looking agitated.

"Yes." she answered bluntly. "I`ve examined at least a dozen possibilities for solving my current inconveniences, only to quickly run into logical fallacies with every single one of them. Now I`m drawing a blank!"

"Oh..." was Lucy`s response. Lisa narrowed her eyes irritably.

"Oh? What are you insinuating?! You don't think I`m intellectually capable of finding a means to artificially accelerate my biological growth!" she asked accusingly, jumping to her feet.

"I never said that." Lucy replied calmly, rolling her eyes inwardly. She might believe in certain things that most people would call baseless superstitions, but even she drew the line at the thought of altering your age with scientific experiments.

But she knew better than to tell Lisa that and subsequently subject herself to the toddlers tantrums. Sometimes it was better to shelter someone`s fragile ego.

"I`m sure you`ll think of something eventually." she said comfortingly. "But maybe you should call it a night and get some rest?"

Lisa spat bitterly and faced away. Eventually she calmed down and spoke up. "Ughh, maybe your suggestion is valid. But what do you propose I should do to keep my mind occupied for the rest of the evening?"

"I dunno. Maybe play some game?" Lucy suggested absentmindedly. "Say...?"

"I know!" the genius suddenly beamed, cutting her off. "We can play "Trivia"!"

She looked at Lucy exuberantly. "I`ll go first. Now try to guess which element on the periodic table I`m thinking off. Here are two hints : its atomic number is 64 and it was discovered in 1880 by Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac!"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Sigh. Lisa, you can't seriously expect me to know that? I know about such stuff as much as you know about the cast and story arcs from The Vampires of Melancholia."

Lisa pouted irritably. "Oh come on! It's gadolinium! I was offering you an _easy_ question!"

"Sure you were." the goth replied with flat sarcasm before looking away.

"Well, what were you anticipating from me? I can't simply regress my own intellect in order to indulge in tea parties and play excruciatingly simplistic board games!" Lisa lamented frustratingly. But Lucy wasn't really paying attention to her ramblings.

"Do you think Lincoln`s alright?" she suddenly asked, surprising the toddler.

"Eh...I don't believe that I comprehend the context of your question?"

"Do you think he`ll be alright staying at...You-Know-Who`s house. I`m...I`m worried." she reluctantly admitted. She just had to speak to somebody about it.

Finally getting up to speed, Lisa`s face softened. "Oh, I understand." she replied humbly.

"To be frank, I wasn't any happier than you to learn about his and Lynn's whereabouts..." she said sympathetically "...I too would prefer our brother being here, but I have good faith in Lynn that she wouldn't lead him anywhere where he would come into harm`s way. Lynn may not be the most observant person, but even she couldn't possibly miss Lincoln being mistreated."

Lucy looked away. "It could still happen. _Taylor_.." she cringed at that name "...is very conniving and deceitfully, if he wants to bully someone..."

"Fair point..." Lisa shrugged "...but from a logical stand point it wouldn't be a very beneficial for him to harm our brother, given that all evidence point towards his infatuation with Lynn being genuine."

"Don`t reminded of that..." Lucy replied with disgust while petting Fang. The mere thought of it was nauseating to her.

"Very true..." Lisa agreed with a slight smile..."... you, me and Lana can count our blessings that we're too young to experience the chemical reaction in our cerebral cortex that makes us crave for the opposite gender."

"Is that what scientists call it?" Lucy asked. "I heard it's a type of curse that befalls girls once they turn twelve."

"You might as well call it that. Either way it's a very disturbing concept." Lisa stated.

"I`ve been pondering for a while about concocting a serum that could prevent that bio-chemical phenomenon. It has to be easier than figuring out a way to-Hold that though!" Lisa`s demeanor changed abruptly, she grabbed her pen and clipboard, and started writting on it.

"Maybe...if I just..." Lucy silently watched her mumble incoherently before she suddenly stopped.

Lisa`s face contorted with anger and she started ripping the paper up, before throwing the clipboard down and stomping on it while uttering an enraged yell.

"Another blank?" Lucy asked intuitively while Fang crouched down in her lamp, the loud noise scaring him.

Lisa grabbed the clipboard and threw it at the door, narrowly missing Luan as she came in, who ducked just in time.

She looked back at the frustrated toddler. "What`s going on here?" she asked as Lana joined her. None of them noticed the tomboy texting on her phone.

"Lisa`s having a "creative block"." Lucy answered plainly. The genius huffed and crossed her arms again.

Lucy then felt her stomach growling. "So, when are we gonna eat?" she asked.

"I ordered a pizza, it should come here...eventually." Luan shrugged. "I`m sure if we don't get it within forty minutes we`ll get it for free." she added jokingly.

"So how's our patriarch?" a grumpy Lisa interjected.

"Sleeping like a baby." Luan smiled. "For better or worse this apartment belongs to the four of us for the night...or at least our bedrooms, can't disturb dad." she shrugged sheepishly.

"Mmhm...so it's no different than any other night, exept we`ll have to dine on junk food." Lisa dryly noted, looking aside.

Lana spoke up. "Hey guys, I was thinkin`..."

"Don`t be such a stiff, Lisa." Luan cut her off. "I know it's been a rough day, but it doesn't mean we can`t have some fun, like playing truth or dare, or charades, or maybe Twister..."

"I think I`ll pass..." Lucy said unenthusiastically "...I think I'll just go to bed early after I eat."

"Hey guys!" Lana stated again.

"You can't be serious, Luce?" Luan tried to lift her spirit. "It`s Friday evening!"

"I think Lucy has the right suggestion." Lisa said tiredly before facing said sister.

"Since you and your _Myotis_ have taken residence in my bunk, mind if I take custody of your sleeping quarters for the night? I`m not feeling the desire for nutrition anyway." she pointed up in a bored tone.

"Fine by me." Lucy shrugged indifferently. Lisa nodded and climbed up the ladder.

"Hopefully a nights rest shall boost my creative thinking." the toddler moaned exasperatedly as she climbed into the bed.

Looking disappointed, Luan shifted her gaze at Lucy, and noticed that something seemed wrong with her. "Is something bothering you, sis?" she asked gently.

"Well...I eh..." the goth`s voice trailed off. She thought about telling her what was troubling her, but being aware of Luan`s ever more positive opinion of Taylor, she didn't think her sister would understand.

"I just wish Lincoln was here..." she said half the truth "...I know he wanted us all to spend some time together, but then...stuff...happened..." her voice trailed off again.

Luan was about to comfort her, when Lana jumped in. "That's what I was thinkin` too!"

The goth and the comedian both looked at her. Lana grinned.

"I was thinkin` we could all go at Ryan`s place too! Maybe stay there for the whole weekend!"

That got Lisa`s attention too. All three looked at her like she was crazy.

"What?" Lucy looked dumbfounded and sounded none too pleased by the idea.

"Yeah, he`s family is away and if Lynn and Lincoln are havin` a sleepover there, why not us too? We can go see Lincoln, and I wanted to see Ryan again for a while. Plus, you remember how big his house is? And his yard? When was the last time we got to play in a yard?"

Luan`s awkward laughter interjected. "Lana, I think you`re being a bit ridiculous here. We can't just drop by uninvited..."

"We won't, I just texted Lynn to ask her if we can? " Lana revealed to them. Luan groaned inwardly.

"I know Ryan likes me, he said so. And didn't you say you guys were friends?"

Luan looked at Lana with uncertainty."Of course we're friends." she laughed. "It`s just we can't just do it, not with the storm..."

"But the storm is passing, look!" Lana pointed at the window. The others did, and saw that it was the case.

"Well I`ll be." Luan was surprised. She thought the storm would last all night.

"See, so can we go?" Lana aked eagerly.

"Lana, don't be ridiculous. We can't just walk around at 8 p.m. And we have no one to drive us, or money for a taxi..."

Lana pouted.

Luan kneeled down and faced her. "I know you want to see him again, I`m sure Ryan feels the same. Maybe we can visit him tomorrow." she suggested with a smile before glancing at her sisters. "And I doubt Lisa and Lucy are in the mood for a slumber party."

Lucy stayed quiet and withdrawn. Lisa looked at Lana uncomfortably, unsure of what to say.

"It...it`s okay if you don't want to..." Lana replied saddly before looking at Luan. "... I just thought you and me..."

"I`m sorry Lana, but we just can't go without someone to drive us..." Luan explained to her sullenly. The tomboy looked down, visibly crushed.

"Hey, cheer up, sis. We can have a fun time, right Lucy?"

Lucy felt slightly better at that question, knowing Lana`s ludicrous idea had been cancelled. And no way would Lynn text them back with an invitation.

Lucy smiled weekly. "Eh sure, you can help me feed Fang his evening moths?"

Lana pouted quietly. At that moment the door bell rang.

"Ah, the pizza has arrived!" Luan cheered and coaxed Lana to come with her.

"Come, let's answer the door." she led the crestfallen Lana towards it.

They opened the door to meet the delivery guy, a tired looking, Hispanic teenager wearing a red polo shirt and cap. To their surprise, he was a familiar face.

"Hello, did you order a large pepperoni..." he started before being interrupted by a yawn and rubbing his eyes.

"Bobby, is that you? Haven't seen you in months?" Lana spoke up, pleasantly surprised.

The tired 16 year old took a closer look and recognized the girls. He smiled weakly. "Oh? Hello there...eh..." he paused, struggling to recall their names "...Lynn and Lola, was it?"

Luan frowned slightly. "Luan and Lana, actually." she corrected him and took the pizza.

"Eh, so you've got a new job, Bobby?" she asked casually as she gave him his payment, trying not to sound annoyed.

"One of several actually." Bobby stated in friendly tone. "Gotta help mom pay the bills."

"Really? How do you even handle so many jobs? I know juggling alone is a hard task, let alone juggling multiple jobs."

Bobby shrugged. "Dunno, guess I`m just really good at planning my weekly schedule. Isn't one of your sisters part of half a dozen sports teams?"

"Huh, good point I guess?" Luan mused. How did Lynn juggle playing and training with so many teams at the same time?

"So how have you guys been doing?" Bobby asked casually, not seeming to be in any hurry.

"Heard you went trough...some rough times." he added sympathetically, growing slightly awkward and withdrawn. He too had heard about how Lori`s siblings had some unfortunate run-ins.

The sisters were both quiet, but Lana suddenly heard a beeping sound and pulled out her phone.

"And...eh...not to be rude, but I think you have a bit of a skin condition?" Bobby noted, noticing Luan`s rash.

Luan sighed and touched her neck. "Yeah...eh...I have some allergies." she lied, not wanting to talk about the real cause of her rash.

"And yeah...it`s hasn't been sunshine and rainbows since mom and dad broke up, but we`ve been hanging on and trying to stay optimistic. Things have been getting better lately."

"Oh, well I`m glad to hear it..." Bobby didn't want to peek in and disturb their privacy, but even from his position he could easily see sleeping on the couch, as well as hear his snoring.

"Eh, rough day at work I presume?" Bobby asked.

Lana nodded " Yeah, and dad also..." Luan lightly bumped her in the shoulder and laughed nervously. For once, Lana got the memo not to talk, and instead took the time to read her phone message. What she read made her smile.

"Yeah, works all day long, from Monday to Friday, he`s completely pooped once he comes back home." she explained hastily, not wanting to spread word that their father had drunk himself into a stupor.

Bobby made a small chukle. "Well I can definitely relate to his pain." he said with an understanding look.

"The fast food joint I work at was supposed to close early today cuz of the storm, but my boss forced me to stay behind to mop the floor, clean the tables and wash the dishes, and once I finished it all the weather suddenly cleared and I was the only one left to make a bunch of late night deliveries." he lamented exasperatedly.

"Yikes! Am I ever glad to be self-employed." Luan replied with a pittying look. "I have the luxury to perform at parties when I like, where I like. Having a job sounds like a _real chore_."

"It is, it is..." Bobby shook his head with a weak smile. "I`m just glad that this is my last delivery for the day and I have the weekend to look foward to." he added absentmindedly.

Lana tuned back in into the conversation, hearing that made an idea form in her head.

"So you don`t have any more work for tonight?" she asked eagerly. Her sister gave her an odd look.

"Nope." Bobby smiled. "And am I glad to..." he was cut off as Lana suddenly hugged his leg and looked up at him with pleading, sparkling eyes.

"So can you _pleeeeaassse_ do us favor?" she asked briskly.

"Huh?" a consufed Luan uttered, as did Bobby.

"A favor?"

"Yeah!" Lana smiled. "You see, Lynn and Lincoln are at this slumber party and we don't have anyone to drive us there, so can you please drive us, Bobby?" the tomboy pleaded speedily. Luan facepalmed.

"Wut? I...eh...I..." Bobby stammered uncomfortably. He wanted to say no, he was exhausted and wanted to go home. But seeing Lana`s big, soulful eyes, he found himself unable to utter that simple response.

"Bobby, you don't have to..." an embarrassed Luan tried to intervene, but it was too late.

"Well...I...suppose I can." he blurted out, immediately hating himself for it.

"Thank you so much!" Lana beamed, only to be dragged away by Luan.

"Can you and me have a word? Privately!" Luan sternly told her little sister.

"Sure!" Lana replied before turning to Bobby. "You can take a seat and make yourself at home while we pack."

"Eh...sure...I will..." Bobby answered miserably, cursing silently how he let himself get roped into playing chauffeur for these kids.

...

Once they were alone in the older siblings room, Luan confronted Lana.

"Look Lana, we can't just guilt trip Bobby into driving us!" she tried to explain. "He`s tired and exhausted from work and school, and probably wants to go home."

Lana pouted, feeling confused. "But he said he could do it?" she said innocently. "Besides, it's just a short drive to Ryan`s place."

Luan pinched the bridge of her nose. "Lana, try to understand, we can't just drop in unannounced, I mean he and Lynn probably want to be alone and..."

"But Lynn said we could come!"

"Wut?!" Luan starred at her slack-jawed. Lana showed her the phone message she had received.

" _Gret idea Lana Ryan is dieing to see you I would love for you all to come. But wholl drive ya_ "

"See, they want us to come!" Lana was bouncing enthusiastically.

Luan was speechless. All she could do is reply with an answer, and a question if her sister was joking with them. A few minutes later they got a response.

" _Boby? What are the ods!XD Of course Im serius! We will have a huge slumber party all together! Get your buts over! I will wake Linc up XD Lynn Out!"_

"See Luan! Told ya!" Lana boasted proudly.

Luan was still speechless. This didn`t make sense. Why would Lynn or Taylor want all of them over there? Was Lynn chickening out? Was she scared to spend quality time alone with Taylor and messing her "date" up? This was all so confusing.

And they had been officially invited and Lana had basically guilt-tripped an exhausted acquaintance of theirs into being their driver. She was stuck in an awkward situation.

The teen looked at her overjoyed little sister. Clearly this meant a lot to her.

"See, isn't this awesome? Ryan`s house is so big! You remember how Lincoln wanted us to spend time together? We can now! And Ryan can join us!" Lana pointed out.

"Well yeah, but..." Luan rubbed her neck, actually considering all of that.

"And you always wanted to go to a sleepover, didn't you?"

"Well I never got the chance on account of not having friends." Luan pointed out sullenly.

"But now you have Ryan. I he`ll be so happy to see us again!" Lana said cheerfully. "Lynn said how he`s always alone with no friends, but now he has us. And I`ve really missed him." Lana pointed out, a bit more somberly.

"Well...I guess we're going after all." Luan tried to smile. This was strange and suspicious to her, but she couldn't back out of it now.

...

"So let me get this straight." Lisa said dryly from the top bunk.

"You two propose that we intrude on Taylor`s property uninvited? And you expect him, or Lynn for that matter, to react positively to this?" her tone betrayed a rather condescending view of their idea.

Luan and Lana both looked irked by her attitude. "Lisa, I`ve told you already, we _are_ invited! As strange as this may sound." Luan clarified to them.

"All things considered, I don't thik this is a bad idea. As they say : opportunity knocks but once. And when are we gonna get the chance for a sleepover minus any adults spoiling our fun again? And can't forget this little coincide."

Lisa rolled her eyes. This had bad idea written all over it. She thought Lana and Luan were delusional, and even after seeing the message she couldn't believe that it was for real. But Lisa felt too tired and disinterested to argue.

Luan flipped trough Lynn`s note book and found Taylor`s address. "Turns out my latest clients live around the same block as Ryan, making it all the easier to prepare for my act. If that's not a sign that we should go then I don't know what is. So are you in?"

"Your offer is very gracious, but unfortunately I`m inclined to decline. I greatly prefer resting in my own home." the genius said plainly.

Luan put her hands on her hips. "Did I mention that the Helmandollar`s kid and her guests will all be around the same age as you. This might be a golden opportunity for you to make friends. Who knows? Some of them might end being your classmates in kindergarten?"

Lisa shuddered with horror after being reminded of that. Unconvinced, she layed on her back and out of sight. "Sounds fascinating, but I must pass." she replied flatly, barely hidding her utter lack of enthusiasm. 

"Besides that, someone must remain at our household to keep an on eye on our father once he inevitably wakes up. Someone will need to explain events to him and "cover" for the rest of you." she quickly added the first thing she could think of to get her sister to let her sleep.

"Whatever. If ya don't wanna then fine by us. It's your loss, egghead." Lana retorted irritably.

Honestly, in her mind, not having a killjoy like Lisa tag along wasn't much of a loss. Luan, on the other hand, was more disappointed. Once again Lisa was ignoring the chance to socialize in favor of working on some futile experiment.

She turned to Lucy. "And what about you, Luce?" she smiled hopefully.

Gently stroking Fang, the goth gazed down at him to avoid eye contact. "No, don't feel like it." she answered simply and quietly.

"Why not, Luce?" Lana wondered. "What do ya got to do in this crummy ol`place?"

Lucy was hesitant to answer. "He`s Lynn`s friends, part of her circle of companions. I have no reason to intrude on their business."

"What do ya mean "intrude"?" the tomboy asked.

Lucy finally looked at them. "Sigh. Lana, hasn't it occurred to you that they wouldn't want little kids like me or you to bother them? That we would just be nuisances to them. As would you, Luan?" she turned towards the teen, sounding more bitter with every word.

"Lucy, I think you're being a tad pessimistic?" Luan replied lightly. "Ryan isn't as bad I you might think and he and Lynn did invite us. If anything, Ryan needs more companionship. And you think he would be "annoyed" by the same kids he risked life and limb to save?" she asked rhetorically.

Lucy stayed quiet. Lana moved closer. "Yeah, you act like he's the bad guy, but he's just misunderstood and lonely." she said innocently.

That remark got Lucy annoyed. "Have you forgotten what he had done to Lincoln." she said tensely, trying to hide her anger.

The tomboy was taken aback by the reminder. "No...but...he said he was sorry, what more can he do?"

Lucy didn't answer and averted eye contact. Luan tapped Lana`s shoulder. "Lana, maybe you should go pack, if Lucy doesn't feel like going we shouldn't force her." she said gently.

Lana looked at her, then gave Lucy a saddened look. "Okay..." she muttered, looking severely disappointed, "...but if you change your mind tell us, okay?" she told the goth with a glimmer of hope, before leaving.

Luan turned towards her younger sister. "Lucy, you don't have to go if you don't want to, but I think you`ll leave Lana disappointed. We can't really spend the night as a family if part of the family is missing." she said softly while simultaneously sending Lisa a look. The genius shrunk back, looking conflicted.

"If Taylor`s there I wouldn't exactly call it a family evening." Lucy replied plainly.

"I guess you still haven't forgiven him, huh?" Luan mused as she sat next to her.

The goth sighed. "I haven't really thought about that, I just don't want to see him again." she admitted, still looking away.

"I know he apologized and all, but why can't we just go our separate ways? Why would you want anything to do with someone who hurt and bullied your family for fun?" she finally faced Luan with a challenging glare.

Luan stayed silent.

"And did you forget how he had struck you without a second thought." Lucy bitterly added.

"No, I did not, Lucy." Luan replied softly.

"But I have forgiven him, we can't hang on to past feuds forever. And it's not just because he helped us once. I did it cuz I really do feel sorry for him, because in the end he was a victim as much as you and me, he is more like us than..."

"I know, I know..." Lucy cut in irritably. "He was made fun of too, but you and me never went around bullying others!"

"Well, you and me didn't have the muscle to do it." Luan joked, only for Lucy to send her a disapproving glare.

"And I`m not saying it was right for him to bully others, it wasn't! But when the world turns its back on you and you have nowhere to escape all you can sometimes do is give in and lash out at the world. You fight the bullies, you become the bully, it's a vicious cycle."

Lucy stayed quiet. "But maybe if someone shows him understanding and compassion, he can climb out of it." Luan continued.

"And I thought Lynn was the one crushing on him." the goth muttered snidely.

Luan blushed. "Lucy, be serious now! My point is, since we've been going to school together I have been nice to him, and Lynn has been nice to him, and he has shown us that there`s more to him than just being a bully."

"Fine." Lucy muttered. "But he's _Lynn`s_ friend, you can call him your friend, but I don't want anything to do with him. He`s not my concern."

"If you feel that way then it's okay." Luan said understandably. "Just...eh...think about what I`ve said, okay?"

With that she leaped off the bed. "Well, I better go pack some things, don't want to leave Bobby waiting forever. And we`ll leave half the pizza for you two on the kitchen table, just so you know."

Lucy didn't respond, she just nodded. And so she left Lucy and Lisa alone.

"You made an inteligent choice, sister." Lisa spoke up approvingly. "This whole exploit of theirs is an abysmal idea in every conceivable way."

Lucy stayed quiet, unsure how to answer.

Lisa continued. "I suppose letting bygones be bygones is more beneficial to an individual if they are no longer being antagonized by the other party, but I`m befuddled by our sisters inexplicable new fondness for that ruffian."

"I guess we can agree on that one." Lucy replied underneath the bunk, her gaze directed towards Fang who was still lying in her lap. It was weird that Lisa of all sisters, in Lucy`s mind, was the only one thinking rationally right now.

"Indeed, and I believe our sole brother shares our frankly more rational opinion. It's sad that he`s trapped in that unsavory vagrant`s home, with the latter and his league of admirers."

" _Lincoln?_ " Lucy remembered. Suddenly she started having second thoughts about staying.

...

"And don`t forget to pack your toothbrush, Lana!" Luan reminded her sister while they were packing.

"Aww, why?" Lana moaned. "My baby teeth are fallin` out anyway."

She opened her mouth and pointed at the gap where her two incisors should have been, as well as most of her teeth being smudged with pizza bits, to prove her point.

Luan rolled her eyes. "Still, brushing three times a day keeps the bad, old dentist away." she quipped.

"Hey guys..." Lucy entered the room.

"Lucy, what's up?" Luan asked. She didn't expect her to come to them at all.

"Well I was thinking..." she started shyly.

"So you're goin` after all?" Lana asked excitedly.

Lucy shifted uneasily. "Well...I got nothing else to do...so I thought "why not", so I left Fang out of the window and..."

"That`s great, sis!" Lana beamed. "It wouldn't be half as fun without you!"

Lana jumped and gave her sister a hug. Lucy forced an awkward smile and hugged her back.

Luan noticed her discomfort. "Lucy, you don't have to force yourself to go out of guilt."

"No, it's not that." Lucy answered quickly as Lana let her go. "I just really want to see Lincoln, and spend the night with you girls."

"Well, kay." Luan replied with uncertainty. "If you really want to go, the more the merrier. I promise you, you won't regret it." she smiled warmly.

"Now hurry up and pack your essentials. Bobby is waiting in his car."

Lucy obeyed, and didn't exchange any more words with them. Luan found her sister`s rapid change of mind to be rather odd, but she didn't overthink it.

...

"Ehh...sorry about that." Lynn apologized sheepishly and coughed as Taylor dumped the scorched popcorn into the trash can.

He let out a long exhale. At least the microwave was undamaged, leaving no evidence of the near fire. The smoke that was encasing the kitchen would soon clear out trough the window.

"You know, Renee asked me not to set the house ablaze. I intended to at least fulfill that request." he told her flatly.

Looking ashamed, Lynn stood silent. Relaxing, Taylor shook his head, growing more amused.

"Alright Lynn. You made your point, I give in." he spoke in a jaunty manner. "Clearly if we wanna avoid more accidents, were gonna have to appease your needs first. We`ll have a match."

"Huh?" the girl looked confused.

Taylor shrugged. "Movies can wait. But I don't wanna risk any more potential injuries, so I`ll have to let you let out some steam." he snarked.

Lynn smirked and punched him in the arm. "Vey funny, wise guy." she replied snidely.

But then she grew an appreciative smile. "You really mean it?"

"Of course, we can play basketball.."

"Basketball? Huh! That's easy. I wanna do somethin` that requires a little more muscle, speed and coordination!" Lynn told him in a challenging tone.

Taylor sighed exhasperatedly. "Very well, but I don't have a tone of sports equipment. We`ll just have to make do with what we can scramble together from the attic."

"No problem, I like improvising!" Lynn exclaimed.

 **Glad to finally have this out. I`ve been writting this chapter for a month now and things kept sidetracking me from finishing it sooner.**

 **Fun fact : Originally I thought about having Flip, who would have been posing as a taxi driver without a license, be the girls means to reach and crash the "slumber party", and Luan would have conned the conman into letting them leave without paying by threatening to call the authorities, but ultimately I thought it would be better to use Bobby instead.**

 **And no, Bobby won't have an important role in this story, he`s just a plot device to get the girls from point A to point B ;P**

 **Also, Lisa`s not going to appear much (if at all) from here on. And to think, she just dismissed her chance to met Darcy for the first time!**


End file.
